The End Is the Beginning Is the End
by ragna ayanami
Summary: "The road to Hell is a lonely one...so why don't I come along?" The girl's eyes shone ominously as she stared at the young Uchiha heir. Wherever their road would they take them, she hoped that it'll be worth it. Temporary HIATUS
1. Ghost in the Night

**Note:** Not the update you were expecting, huh?

This doesn't mean that my main fic for the Walking Dead fandom is done. Not by a long shot. I'm just experimenting with this story. I have no idea where it will take me, so right now I'm just going with the flow.

Something to give me inspiration to write for TWD. Weird, right?

Enjoy.

 **Everything (except for my OC's) belong to Masashi Kishimoto.**

* * *

Fingers tapped impatiently on the supporter of the armchair.

She had been waiting in this darkened apartment for the last hour and a half. At first she had contented herself with snooping around, just something to stave off the boredom. But now, she was bored again and frustrated.

Her brow furrowed deeper the moment she remembered the reason why she was in a darkened apartment thousands of miles away from home in a village that could prove hazardous for her if discovered.

 _Sasuke Uchiha._

One of the last living survivors of the Uchiha Clan.

—And Orochimaru's newest obsession.

Her sensei had sent her to Konohagakure with a specific objective in mind: deliver a letter to the youngest Uchiha.

While she found it beneath her status, she had reluctantly accepted the task since saying no to Orochimaru was the equivalent to being his next subject on the operating table.

She _could_ have said no. It wouldn't be the first time, and she knew Orochimaru would have sent the Sound Four or Kimimaro in her place, sick as he was. But Kimimaro was a zealot—the Snake Sanin knew that and she knew that—and the Sound Four were too rowdy, as such would be the wrong choice for such a 'delicate' task.

A yawn split her lips wide and, like a cat, she stretched on the plush armchair, arms over her head. Groaning, she heard her back pop like fizzy water. Sloth like, she slumped all over the armchair and seriously contemplated taking a nap.

Her eyelids were on the dangerous verge of closing when the door to the apartment opened with a bang.

The intruder silently jumped from the armchair and slinked into the protective shadows of the window curtains.

Hidden eyes watched as a thirteen year old boy walked across the living area with furious, brisk steps. Even with the darkness blanketing the room she could see a bandage wrapped around one of his hands. The iron scent surrounding the boy alerted the stranger to an open wound underneath the bandage.

The Oto resident waited patiently and listened to those brisk steps disappear into the hall. A door opened and the sound of water rushing notified her of his presence in the bathroom.

Cautious boot covered feet followed said boy. She wondered how he hadn't sensed the anomaly— _her_ —in his apartment. It wasn't like she had been suppressing her chakra. Maybe his apparent anger was drowning out the more obvious aspects around his person.

 _Careless._

She stopped in the hallway and watched as the light from the open door produced shadows on the opposite wall. The boy was washing his hands, specifically his injured one.

Carefully, she approached the open door and stopped short of stepping into the light.

"Shit…Shit!...FUCK!"

The sound of glass shattering put a pause to her plans.

Peeking over the edge, she came upon the sight of a broken mirror and the Uchiha boy hunched over the sink, fingers holding the porcelain with white knuckles. His injured hand was bleeding freely now, rivulets of blood trailing down the immaculate sink and pooling underneath. His heavy breathing was washed out by the force of the faucet and blue tinted black hair covered his face, hiding his expression from curious eyes.

The stranger leaned against the casing of the door with her hands in her coat pockets and watched lazily as the Uchiha boy began muttering underneath his breath. His arm muscles tensed further with each murmur, his words no doubt having an effect on his psyche. Names like Kakashi and Naruto reached her ears, as well as proclamations that 'dobe' couldn't be stronger than him. Something about a Rasengan being stronger than his attack…

Hidden eyes suddenly narrowed as the boy hissed in pain and grabbed at the side of his throat.

 _Ah…_

She could feel it. The murky, tainted chakra that was the Cursed Seal of Heaven.

Kami, how she loathed it. Whenever she activated hers it felt like she was being dipped in foul, swampy water.

A part of her will always hate Orochimaru for branding her with the Cursed Seal of Earth. It was a grotesque distortion of life and, frankly, despite its pros, it turned her into a monster.

After the mutation, she had struggled with her seal. The pain, coupled with the need to release the dark energy within her had been suffocating. Over the years, she had learned a measure of control over it and decided to use it fully only when necessary. The Uchiha youngling was most likely experiencing those effects like a sledgehammer to the crotch.

Black tendril like symbols outgrew from underneath the hand. The girl watched as the Uchiha struggled to hold back the seal from taking over his mind.

The start of the markings retreating was the end of the ten minutes of tense anticipation. The stranger let out a quiet breath of relief, thankful that she avoided a situation where she had to confront one of those monsters. They were absolutely grotesque in her opinion.

As much as the girl found this whole situation intriguing, she wanted to get this over with.

"You're quite the angry little thing, aren't you?"

The speed in which the boy's head snapped must have given him one hell of a whiplash. His dark eyes were wide as they settled on her and his lips parted open.

"Wha—" It took him a moment to come out of his stunned state and glare at her suspiciously. "Who the hell are you? What are you doing in my apartment?"

"Who am I is none of your concern, but what I carry does." She made a small step towards him.

Sasuke stilled as an apprehensive sheen settled over his eyes. "Are you one of those insane fan girls that bring weird gifts?"

"I— What? " The serious tone in which she would have presented Orochimaru's letter completely evaporated. _Fan girl?_ "You have fan girls?" The girl immediately shook off her incredulity and frowned at him in annoyance. "Do I look like one to you?"

"They come in different shapes." He's had his share of older kunoichi try to hit on him which he found to be infinitely more disturbing than his female classmates' advances.

"I'm _not_ a fan girl." She said between gritted teeth. _Arrogant shit._ "I'm here to deliver a message."

It was then that it hit Sasuke. She wasn't sporting a hitai-ate nor did she wear any of the standard uniforms. In fact, she was dressed completely different from what he's seen so far of the Konoha populace—she was wearing sunglasses indoors, for kami's sake. From what else he saw, there was a katana strapped to her back, but other than that he couldn't determine if she had any other weapons on her since she wore a knee length coat.

While eccentric tastes weren't out of the ordinary—Lee and Gai—there was something about her that had him on edge. It was the aura that she was giving off. While it seemed cool, he could sense the underline of something _dark_ just hidden underneath the surface.

"You're not a Konoha shinobi."

"Well, aren't you observant?" The smile she gave him was razor sharp. "No, I belong to a much more _selective_ group."

Pushing one of her coat lapels out of the way, Sasuke's eyes turned to stone at the sight of the Otogakure hitai-ate used as decorum for a belt buckle.

"You're one of _that man_ 's shinobi." It took all his strength not to immediately stab the girl.

"Yes. And I have a message for you from said man." She casually flicked the scroll she took out from her pocket and Sasuke caught it expertly.

The Uchiha gave the scroll a single glance before a burst of flame engulfed the paper and reduced it to ash within seconds.

"Well…" The girl started as she watched the ashes fall elegantly to the tile floor. "That wasn't very nice."

The girl dodged the first kunai with ease. The second one she caught midair and sent it back to the Uchiha, slicing his cheek in the process. Enraged, the boy jumped her with a kick aimed to her head. The girl leaned back, avoiding the leg like a slippery weed. Once the boy's leg passed her, she righted herself and caught his calf with an iron grip, squeezing with enough force to make the Uchiha grimace in pain. Without wasting a second, the girl pulled his leg closer and once his upper body leaned over to balance himself in this awkward position, she caught him by his shirt and with surprising force, lifted him off his foot and threw him into the bedroom opposite the bathroom.

Hitting the mattress, he didn't even have the time to breathe as the girl straddled his chest, capturing his wrists with one hand and forcing them above his head. Her free hand moved swiftly to disarm the young genin, all his weapons stored within seconds onto her body.

"You're feisty too. I like that in shinobi." The girl snickered in dark amusement.

The Sharingan reared its head and illuminated his eyes. Alas, they never had the chance to do much of anything as the stranger placed her hand over his eyes and Sasuke felt the chakra fueling his kekkei genkai drain almost instantly.

Panicked, the boy kicked out with his legs, kneeing her side. The only thing it accomplished was annoy the girl and in retaliation she punched him in the chest, effectively cutting off his oxygen.

The girl watched coolly as the Uchiha coughed hoarsely and struggled to regain his breath with loud gulps of air. Her body mass didn't help his recuperation since she was sitting on him.

"Do that again and I'll hit you worse." It was a real warning. The girl had no reservations in causing him bodily harm. Orochimaru had ordered her to simply carry out her task. He never said anything about not roughing up the boy if he got out of hand.

"Get off me, you bitch!" He spat nasally, his lungs still not working a hundred percent.

A flash of teeth was his answer as she tittered. "Hehehe. That's cute."

Whatever amusement she had, immediately slipped off her face once the boy started struggling again. It was like riding a baby bronco. "Oi. Calm down."

He either didn't seem to hear her or he simply ignored her as his bucking increased, almost making the girl slip off to the side.

Sasuke paused when the sudden murderous aura engulfed him, making the hair on his arms stand up and a cold shiver crawl down his spine. Looking up at her, he almost recoiled as the darkness of the room emphasized the killing intent rolling off of her, the shadows making her appear wraith like.

—The menacing expression on her face could crack stone, he thought.

Her face got closer to Sasuke until only a few inches separated them.

"Either you calm down or I'm going to gag you and tie you up with a metal wire that will cut through your skin like butter. I'm not here to hurt you, but if you force my hand, I will have no choice. And trust me when I say this, leniency is not a quality I'm known for." The words were articulated with such chilling precision that it made Sasuke unconsciously burry deeper into the mattress. "Which is it going to be?"

It took Sasuke a good few moments to make his choice and while it was excruciating to his pride to listen to the stranger, he calmed himself down and relaxed his muscles. Right now, he was in no position to argue and he _knew_ just by looking at her that the girl would follow up on her threat.

"Good choice." She nodded approvingly. "If I let go, will you behave?"

Begrudgingly, Sasuke nodded.

The girl gave him a once over, measuring up his chakra circulation for any impulsive intentions. Once she was sure he would keep to his word, she returned to her initial position, the aura shrinking back into the sinister pits of her sub consciousness.

Lifting herself off, the girl settled on the bed next to him. Sasuke immediately got off the bed and put as much distance between himself and her. Without arousing her suspicion, he stopped next to the bookcase where a kunai was stored in case of emergency. And this situation seemed to warrant it.

"I already took all the weapons you had hidden in your house, so don't even bother."

Fingers twitched as eyes narrowed dangerously.

 _Goddamn bitch._

With a sigh, the girl craned her neck, she almost sighed out loud as the muscles stretched, releasing the tenseness from them.

"Now, since you so rudely burned my sensei's message, you're going to have to hear it come from me." She cleared her throat and straightened her back, assuming a more diplomatic position. "Long story short, Orochimaru wants you to come join—"

"No."

The girl wasn't deterred. She had already anticipated his answer. "He can offer you power. The kind of power you will never find here." The shine from her rounded sunglasses moved fractionally. "The Cursed Seal is a testimony to that."

Without thinking, his hand moved to his neck as if to convince himself of the presence of the seal, but at the last minute realized his actions and stopped. Charcoal eyes settled on the girl's throat and wondered.

"Do you have one?"

With a gloved nail, she tapped the left side of her throat. As Sasuke focused, it was then that he felt its chakra. It was faint, barely noticeable if you weren't looking for it, but still as ominous as his.

"You aren't the only one Orochimaru has his eyes on."

Shaking his head, Sasuke cleared his head of seals and other thoughts related to Orochimaru. He wanted the Oto girl out of his house. His hand was still bleeding and he could see the bloody stain that dirtied the white sheets of his bed.

"I'm not interested in that insane man's offer. Go back to whatever hole you crawled out of."

The girl sighed and moved to her feet. She had been right; the boy was going to be a handful.

"I've been watching you, you know." She paced slowly, her steps never too far or too close to him. "Part of my assignment pertaining to you was to keep track of your doings as well as your connections to your peers. If it were up to me, I would have assigned a subordinate do it since it's such a meager task, but I've been ordered to personally oversee you for the past several weeks."

Sasuke's guard tightened at her statement. He hadn't felt any presence following him in the last week or so. And Kakashi hadn't acted any different than he usually did…but then again, it was hard to read the aloof jonin. If he had sensed her, he most likely wouldn't have notified his team—flashes of the Demon Brothers came to mind.

He still didn't like the fact that an Oto-nin had so easily managed to cohabitate in the village without alerting anyone.

"You've changed since our surprise attack on Konoha two months ago." The girl leaned against the bookcase, watching him hawkishly. "You're more withdrawn, angry, prone to snap at your teammates and _impatient_."

The enlistment of these traits that he had been ignoring for quite some time was like an awakening slap. While he was aware that his temper was down-spiraling as well as his self-control, he didn't _want_ or _need_ someone else to point them out. Even hearing them from his sensei had made him want to rip his book apart in juvenile fashion.

"I've seen your clash with Uzumaki on the rooftop." It was still recent in her mind, it having happened a few hours ago. She had been quite surprised by it. Not by Sasuke's display of prowess, but by the Jinchuriki. The force of his jutsu had been stunning. "Quite the emotional rollercoaster."

"Fuck you."

Teeth flashed from behind chapped lips. "Heh. You wouldn't want that. I bite." The grin left her lips as soon as it appeared. "It bothered you, didn't it? The fact that your other male teammate, the last in your class, is now stronger than you?"

"The dobe will _never_ be as strong as me." Eyes widened with rage as a spark of crimson lit up his eyes eerily.

She was not impressed. "Stop denying it. You saw it with your own eyes what that boy is capable. He is on a whole different level than you and it just boils your blood. Envy is the ulcer of the soul, don't you know?"

"I'm. Not. Jealous." He practically spat each word between gritted teeth. The only way he would ever become jealous of Naruto was if he became the reincarnation of the Sage of the Sixth Path. "And I'm going to become stronger. Sensei will train me."

"There's only so much Hatake can teach you." Again, she started pacing. This time she got closer, circling him like a shark. "I've read his files. Child genius, the Fourth Hokage's apprentice, Jonin at ten, ANBU at twelve. Nothing I wouldn't expect from a man known as 'Copy-Ninja' Kakashi, the 'Thief of a Thousand Jutsus'. But there is one thing that Hatake lacks that my sensei doesn't."

She stopped right behind him and leaned in closer, making the boy tense further. Her breath ghosted over his ear as she whispered.

"Restraint."

Sasuke half turned towards her, eyes calculating.

 _I finally got your attention, it seems._

"Hatake will never teach you more than what he has now because in his eyes you are a child."

The twitch in his brow coupled with his fingers curling into fists told her that she hit the mark. And she wasn't about to lose this chance to drive in the slither of doubt.

"Tell me, has he ever tried to persuade you from your goals? Ever told you that seeking revenge on your brother is useless and foolish?"

The confrontation with Kakashi a mere two hours ago came to the forefront of his mind. The subject of his sensei's lecture had been wrapped around him ceasing his plans for revenge as it will lead him down a self-destructive path. In that moment, he had hated the man. Hated him with enough emotion he hadn't thought capable of producing for anyone else other than his brother. Who was he to tell him that? Sasuke didn't care that in his youth, Kakashi's arrogance made him lose his teammates. The death of a friend didn't even come close to losing your family—your entire clan—in the span of one night. Worse, losing them at the hands of your older brother.

—He didn't know shit about the pain he had been living with for the past five years.

"Orochimaru has no reservations." Her husky voice brought him back to the present and off of his gloomy thoughts. "He will welcome your goals and your hatred with open arms. He will give you knowledge and power you never even dreamed of, which is more than can be said about your current mentor."

The Uchiha youngling didn't respond, but silently watched her with cold, impenetrable eyes.

The Oto girl didn't like the lack of response. Not even a muscle or facial twitch, nothing to indicate his train of thought.

"Your teammates will hold you back. Hatake will hold you back. They are nothing but hindrances that will weaken you and keep you away from your goals. Hatake will deny teaching you more than he thinks is appropriate, not because he thinks you're not ready, but because he wishes for his lovely little genins to grow up normal, happy—"

"I've heard enough." The abrupt manner in which he cut her off, gave the girl pause. With rising incredulity, she watched as he turned his back on her as if she was nothing more than a harmless puppy. "Get out."

Blink.

Eyes narrowed to slits behind black lenses.

 _Do_ not _turn your back on me._

If any of the Oto-nins treated her with that much insolence she would have severely punished them without remorse. Disrespect for her person was something she did _not_ tolerate.

—And she'll be damned is she'll allow this depressing, haughty brat disregard her!

Fingers curled around the handle of her katana and the stone-cold rage that overwhelmed her would have brought serious consequences if she had acted on those impulses.

"You don't want to do that."

Those words effectively cut off the haze that clogged her brain. The Uchiha boy looked over his shoulder and an insufferable smirk spread his lips.

"If Orochimaru wants me, that means he needs me in one piece." His gaze traveled to the death grip on her katana. "I don't think he'll be too happy with you cutting me in half."

It took a few moments for her mind to process his words and it was like a bucket of cold water. His statement while true didn't put down the sudden spark of wild burning hellfire that bloomed in her gut. If he was anyone else, if Orochimaru didn't need him alive, she would have taken her time with him. Slowly and painfully.

Unclenching her rigid fingers from the blade handle, she took a deep breath and hid her rage behind the authoritarian wall she used as her de facto mood.

Now was not the time for a confrontation. If she did cause him harm, the Oto swordsman was sure she would lose him and whatever tiny amount of progress she made tonight.

"Fine."

Sasuke's eyes narrowed in suspicion when she suddenly pushed her left sleeve up, revealing myriads of tattoos. The Oto girl bit the inside of her cheek and spat a wad of blood onto her painted skin. While disgusted, Sasuke watched her movements with keen eyes. Her thumb smearing the blood across the tattoo and the murmur of Kuchiyose caused a sudden poof of smoke to appear and from it a larger than average, darkly colored moth zoomed out.

"But if you wish to speak, give a shout." With a silent command, her summon glided over to Sasuke. "This moth works like a radio communicator. Just let it touch your skin and think of me. It'll do the rest."

Sasuke gazed at the insect with dubious eyes. _This moth was a communicator?_

The moth flapped its wings with grace before carefully settling onto his shoulder. While on a different day, Sasuke would have cut down the insect before it could even encroach in his personal bubble, he was actually curious about it. He had never heard of a summon working this way, to his knowledge they usually carried out messages physically.

The sudden cool breeze whisking over his form brought him out of his stupor. The Oto-nin was sliding his balcony door open and stepping out the same way she had appeared into his life—like a ghost.

"I'll be around."

With a cool side glance, she gave him a small piece of 'advice'. "Don't try to find me because you won't. If you alert anyone of my presence, they will never catch me. Besides, people will want to know why an Otogakure ninja was in your house in the middle of the night."

"Whatever." The younger Uchiha tsked uncaringly. He had no intention of ever telling anyone of this meeting or using her summon to contact her.

The girl gave him one last look before jumping off the terrace. Sasuke watched as she blended in with the night colors, disappearing from his sight entirely. Not even a faint trail of her chakra was left behind, nothing to notify anyone of her existence.

Sasuke closed his balcony door and shooed the moth of his shoulder.

He was in dire need of some stitches.

* * *

The door closed with a silent click.

A sigh broke the silence of the inn room as the girl removed her jacket and slumped against the nearest chair. Fishing out a crumbled pack of cigarettes from her inner coat, she pulled one out. Her lighter was an outdated piece of shit, but it still worked. Taking a long drag out of her cigarette, the swordsman sighed heavily.

 _What a night…_

She could feel the beginning of a headache and as such, peeled her sunglasses off to reveal icy blue eyes. Massaging her temple, she replayed the entire conversation with the Uchiha brat in her mind. For their first conversation, it had gone surprisingly well. Every question, every monologue she had uttered had been thought out before she ever met him. The Oto swordsman hadn't been lying when she said she had monitored his every move. She had listened in in the majority of his conversations and from there she had created her speech for him, using all the right words to catch his attention.

—It was in these moments that she loved having those moths as her primary summons. They were rather useful in their abilities.

The fact that Sasuke had listened to her meant that he was keeping his mind open to ideas. And that was enough for her to wedge her way in and influence his thoughts.

The girl was sure that he would contact her soon. He will realize her words were true and he'll come shouting indignations to her.

—And then she'll take him back to Orochimaru and the man will take over his body.

End of story.

The whole 'join Otogakure, become strong enough to defeat your brother' was a sham for her boss to gain a new host for his Living Corpse Reincarnation. The time for him to change bodies was nigh and he chose the younger Uchiha as his next victim.

A week. That was how much time he gave her to convince the boy. If she passed the deadline, she would have to resort to force and she didn't want it to come to that. Having an entire village after you was not a welcome prospect.

Exhaling a cloud of smoke, the Oto swordsman leaned over herself, her elbows on her knees and her free palm massaging her entire face. She was _beyond_ exhausted. The last seven months had pushed her to her limits. Between the weeks of persuading and negotiating with Sunagakure to form an alliance and attack Konohagakure, to the months of planning said attack and the reconnaissance required for it, to the tactics and training required to assassinate the Kazekage and his bodyguards, to putting up with Orochimaru's anger once said attack failed and his downright fury when the Slug Princess refused to heal his arms that the recently deceased Hokage rendered powerless via Dead Demon Consuming Seal.

—She swore, if the Snake Sanin didn't give her at least a week off, she would blow one of his laboratories to kingdom come. Damn the consequences.

The sudden movement in her coat had her straightening out in her chain. Opening her pocket, a moth flew out and settled over one of her naked fingers. The image of her boss flashed before her mind.

 _Speak of the devil…_

Bringing down some of her mental barriers, the sly, hissing voice of the Snake Sanin echoed into her mind.

" _Rei."_

" _Sensei. It's always pleasant to hear your cheery voice."_ The sardonic in her voice was so obvious even a deaf man would have heard it.

The tsk that followed made her smirk _._ She would have betted her katana that if Orochimaru had been a lesser man he would have done an exasperated eye-roll _. "What is Sasuke-kun's answer?"_

Whatever slight jovial mood she had been in, slipped right down the drain. It was time for serious business. _"…I'm still working on it."_

Whenever Orochimaru paused for five seconds meant that he was not happy _._ Ten meant furious. Over ten was straight-up homicidal. Thankfully it was five. _"That is_ disappointing _."_

" _I told you that this was going to take some time."_ She sighed as she moved from the chair to the bed and laid on it, taking a drag out of her cigarette _. "I can't force him. He has to come by his own initiative, otherwise this will never work. Look, I've made him aware of several things and, hopefully, he's going to start noticing them in the next few days. I'm estimating that he's going to contact me in about two-three days."_

" _And if he doesn't?"_

Brows furrowed in apprehension. She had several plans in case Sasuke missed the deadline, but she didn't want to go there since the majority involved ropes, tranquilizers and fighting a throng of Konoha ninjas.

" _Then I'll go to Plan B."_

" _I'm sure Plan B in your mind means stirring up chaos."_ The flat tone in which he delivered had the smirk back in place.

" _Chaos will arise regardless of what the Uchiha chooses."_

" _Indeed."_ He cackled wickedly, already seeing the ripples Sasuke's new alliance will cause. He just wished he could see his former teammates' expressions when that happened.

Rei waited for his amusement to die down. She desperately wanted for this conversation to end and for her to get some rest.

" _I will send the Sound Four the moment Sasuke-kun agrees, along with the container necessary to speed up the Cursed Seal's process."_

Using the container meant days of being locked inside it to progress into the second stage of the Cursed Seal. The only thing it meant to Rei was that Sasuke will offer no resistance whatsoever.

" _Fine with me. I will wait for them at—"_

" _No."_ He cut her off offhandedly. _"The Sound Four will handle Sasuke-kun. You will return to the southern outpost."_

Pause.

"… _What?"_ She rose into a sitting position and frowned into the darkness of the room _._ With a flick of her wrist she stubbed her dying cigarette in the dirtied, full ashtray on her nightstand. _"I don't understand. Isn't my mission objective to bring the boy to you?"_

" _You will, but the Sound Four will traverse Fire with Sasuke-kun and handle his development. Whatever resistance they will encounter,_ they _will annihilate."_ The Sanin explained shrewdly _. "You will wait for them at the border, where_ you _will bring Sasuke-kun to me."_

The Oto-nin scowled and in resentment, threw her ashtray across the room. _"I understand."_

She hated it when Orochimaru benched her like a rookie. She was more than capable of handling any mission thrown at her and yet he still held her back every damn time. Case in point, the attack on Konohagakure—instead of joining the fight, she had been ordered to coordinate the attacks from a safe point. Again, she had wanted to join the excursion to find Tsunade, but she had been tasked with watching the Uchiha brat. At least she had had the opportunity to fight with the Suna ninjas, but that didn't say much since Orochimaru personally fought the Kazekage while she, Kabuto and Kimimaro handled the bodyguards.

" _You will keep tabs on their progress and if any of the Sound Four are killed, you follow procedure. Those that remain alive will escort you back to the base."_

" _What if they can't handle the Konoha ninjas?"_ That was a possibility. Konohagakure had produced some fine shinobi in the past thirty years or so and while the Sound Four were strong, they lacked the experience necessary to deal with hardened veterans.

" _Then I will send Kimimaro to ensure the success of the mission."_

Brows shot up in incredulity and the girl almost screeched in indignation _. "Seriously?! You're picking the half-dead fanatic over me?"_

" _Kimimaro is strong enough to handle any jonin or ANBU."_ Orochimaru's tone ventured into passive hostility. He didn't need one of his subordinates to shout at him, much less lecture him. Especially his own student. _"You underestimate the five of them too often."_

It wasn't that she underestimated them; Rei knew that they were powerful. They had been her sparing partners for the past three years and, during the time he had been healthy, Kimimaro could have given her a run for her money. She knew their strengths and weaknesses like the back of her hand.

—The only problem was that they despised each other.

They were the embodiment of everything she hated in Otogakure ninjas. They were unruly, they frequently disobeyed her orders even though she outranked them and the blatant disrespect they publicly showed her on occasion had earned them long days in Orochimaru's deepest, dankest cells. And that was the second worse place to find yourself in other than the operating table.

While Rei hated them for their behavior, they hated her for the fact that while almost the same age, she was stronger and had more influence in Otogakure than them.

But waging a war with Orochimaru over those bastards was not high on her list right now. They've been over this subject for over a dozen times and the man will never budge on her proposition to slap a controlling seal on them.

"… _Fine. I will follow orders."_

" _You better, Rei."_ The veiled threatening tone wasn't lost to her. _"This is not the time for your independent streak. I will_ not _tolerate any deviation from the plan."_

" _Yes, sir."_

With that, Orochimaru's presence disappeared from her mind. The moth flew from her arm and returned to its place in her pocket.

Rei groaned out loud and fell backwards onto the mattress. Her headache just accentuated three times over. Tomorrow was going to be a new day filled with surveillance and waiting and she wanted nothing more than to be back at base in her own room. She felt out of place in Konohagakure, it being too peaceful for her sake. She was used to Oto's dark atmosphere and the shinobi that were always trying to run you over in their quest for power.

With a sigh, she closed her eyes and fell into oblivion.

* * *

 **Foot Note:** Well, what do you think?

This is the first anime fanfic that I post, but not the first I write. My first one is a Sengoku Basara that I have no idea if I will ever finish. Anyways, this fic will be chaotic in updating unfortunately. I don't know when I will update it or when I will write even a few words for it. I am disorganized like that…

I have no intention of making this fic a happy one, like the manga is. I detest storylines that rely on the power of friendship and all that bullshit. Hence why I stopped reading Naruto a few years ago. I guess this will push me to continue reading it to the end.

I am going to follow canon but I will also change things. Make it a bit darker.

Also, I have heard bits and pieces of how the last chapter is and I will say it from now, it **never** happened for me. I refuse to acknowledge it. Dude, seriously? :[


	2. Purpose

_**Story and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto, except for my OC's of course.**_

* * *

 _ **Konohagakure - Two months ago**_

 _Bombs, screams and the biting sounds of metal clashing against metal were heard in the distance. Rei stood atop the rooftop of one of the highest buildings in Konohagakure, overlooking the carnage below her with shrewd eyes. She along with her tactical advisors, the Suna Commander and his counselors where located in the eastern side of the village, hidden behind chakra barriers._

 _Her teeth grinded in annoyed fashion. The first hour of their attack had been magnificent; they had been killing Konoha shionib left and right and taking over their sectors with barely any resistance. They had really taken them by surprise. Konohagakure had not expected Orochimaru to disrupt the Chunin Exams much less for Sunagakure to be allied with him in the attack. And things would have gone much smoother if the Ichibi container had been present and not in the midst of a breakdown miles away._

 _But then everything changed. Like some freak of nature, the tide turned and Konoha was gradually gaining back its strength and territory. The village was fighting back like the cornered animal it was and Rei was starting to get worried._

— _Especially since they were losing ground._

" _Goddammit! Get the remaining teams at the arena over to the northern side to support the 13_ _th_ _, 26_ _th_ _and 7_ _th_ _platoon!" Rei barked as she perceived distant events through her moths. The girl had an assembly of a dozen multi-colored moths on her naked arms, all transmitting and receiving information. Right now, Rei had a vision similar to a kaleidoscope, each window showing a different location and sequence of events. The rest of her advisors were in a similar condition with a portion of moths covering the skin of their arms._

" _We do that and we'll lose the arena!" The Suna Commander snapped back as he received information from his ninja at the arena. It was_ really _bad there._

 _Rei turned towards him with a vicious look. "We've already lost it! Let's focus on the sections we can win."_

 _The elder shinobi glared back. He wasn't pleased to have a teenager bark orders at him like_ he _was the junior here. Rei didn't care though, she wasn't new to stepping on toes or pissing off ninja decades older than her. She knew what effects she had on them and all she could think was that they had to suck it up and deal with it. Besides, Suna shinobi were weak in general. They had fallen low in the past couple of decades and the effects were felt in the last and current generation. Of course there were always exceptions—the Sand Siblings were an example of that._

 _Rei abandoned her perusal and returned to the shinobi crouched around a detailed map of Konoha. There were small flags embedded all over the map to represent the different village soldiers and the platoon they were part of. Cold pale eyes moved from one corner to the other, mentally calculating tactical maneuvers and their outcome._

" _We'll push the remaining shinobi from the arena towards the Hokage monument." Rei said as she moved the flags from the arena to the mountain side. "The bulk of Konoha's forces are concentrated near the arena and in the north where the civilians are being evacuated."_

" _Attacking the ninja guarding the civilians is a good idea." A Suna advisor said as he stroked his small goatee. "Their focus will be divided between fighting us and protecting their weak. Easier to kill this way."_

 _The Oto Commander nodded as she signaled one of her ninja's to give out the orders to the arena shinobi. Her gaze then fell on the youngest of her advisors, who was no more than 26 years old. "What's the status on the team following the Suna Jinchuriki?"_

" _Still no word." The man shook his head as he was again met with silence from the other side of the moth._

" _Then we'll assume they're either incapacitated or dead." There was no time to linger on 'what ifs'. No communication meant you are considered out._

" _Should we send another team?"_

" _No, it's a waste of time. Our forces need to be concentrated here." She pointed at the map succinctly. "I'm not risking another team on some psychotic kid. The Suna siblings are on their own."_

 _The glares received from the Suna shinobi were not lost to her. If the boy had proven himself in the attack, maybe she would have reconsidered._

" _Send a team to track Kankuro-sama and Temari-sama and to take them to safety." The Suna commander barked at one of his advisors. "I don't even want to think what the Kazekage will do if his children die."_

Jokes on you. Your Kazekage is dead and his body nothing but worm food. Don't think he'll care much, _Rei thought as she forced down the smirk that threatened to split her lips._

" _I see that you are not including the Ichibi container in your rescue team." Rei said casually._

 _The elder man's only answer was a sharp glower._

 _Rei snorted. It was laughable how much Hidden Villages hated their Jinchurikis. If they abhorred them so adamantly, why didn't they just banish them? Save everyone the trouble…_

 _The Oto swordsman turned to her advisors. "What's Orochimaru-sama's status?"_

" _He's still fighting the Sandaime. He's summoned the first and second Hokage." Rei's only female advisor said as she had the task of observing the battle between the Kages._

 _A wide grin stretched Rei's lips to the breaking point. "Heh, the old man is tougher than I thought if sensei had to bring out those two walking corpses."_

Boom.

 _The sudden explosion rocked the building they were on. Rei lost her balance for a second as she waited for the tremors to subside. Even the barrier team lost focus for a moment and almost made them visible to the world. Snapping at the team to focus, Rei wiped around to find the source of the explosion and her eyes widened once she found it…or them._

 _Three brightly colored gigantic frogs were situated in the middle of Konohagakure. Each of them had some sort of accessory, like a smoking pipe or a neck scarf or some other 'cute' piece._

" _What the fuck? Frogs?" The blue one was the most closest to their location which made the Oto swordsman swallow nervously. It was huge._

" _Summons._ Toads _to be specific." A Suna advisor said as he gazed at the amphibians with awe._

Toads? _It was then that it dawned on her. "Shit…It's Jiraiya." Not even a few seconds passed as anger washed over her features and she turned on one of her advisors. "Wasn't he supposed to be unconscious? What did I send that kunoichi with the poison for?!"_

 _The Suna Commander grunted with a small smirk. "I think we can both agree at this point that the plan didn't work and the woman is most likely dead."_

 _Rei flashed her teeth at him like a rabid animal. She_ hated _it when her plans failed, even more when someone pointed it out to her. With a deep breath, she regained control of her cool and eyed one of her ninja. "Get the summoning teams to direct the snakes over to the Sanin. I want those frogs dead. Now!"_

" _Yes, Commander." He replied as he mentally relayed orders through his appointed moths._

 _Rei's attention returned to her moths and began multitasking furiously._

 _ **Half an hour later**_

" _We just lost the 2_ _nd_ _, 6_ _th_ _, 20_ _th_ _and 18_ _th_ _platoons. Half of our militia is still active, the rest are either dead or wounded." An Oto advisor said between gritted teeth._

" _The toads are wining. We're down to two snakes." The sweat poured down his forehead in cold rivulets._

" _Summoning Team One is down. Two is still active and Three is MIA." The man pinched the bridge of his nose as he listened to the relays of the moths._

" _Sunagakure platoons 4, 13 and 10 are KIA and we just lost contact with 25 and 27." A female Suna advisor said as she gazed in trepidation at her commander._

 _The eldest of Rei's advisors moved flags on the map. "ANBU moved in the north. They're pushing our advancing teams gradually. If we don't send more ninja there, we'll lose the ground we made."_

 _Rei stood still as a statue as she listened to these reports. On the outside she looked hardened and composed, the pride of any seasoned shinobi, but on the inside, it was all she could do not to scream her head off._

 _How was this possible? They had come in strong and with that passionate determination decimated the Konoha shinobi, and Rei had been sure they would win. With every clash, there had been no sign of Konoha changing its luck. With their Hokage cut off from them, the Fire shinobi were like headless chickens. But then_ he _had to appear…that goddamn perverted former teammate of Orochimaru's that her sensei hated more than a failed experiment. He must have had some sort of effect on the moral of the Konoha shinobi because they were now fighting tooth and nail for their beloved village._

Oh Kami, this is a disaster…We're losing.

 _Rei bit her lower lip to the point of tearing skin._

And Orochimaru is going to blame me for this. And he's right. Shit, I can lead a platoon sized mission, but I don't have the first clue on how to coordinate a goddamn war!

 _Tiny drops of blood pooled._

Fuck! I'm in over my head. I should have refused this position. Kabuto has more experience than me. I should have—

" _Commander, we have a problem…"_

 _Rei closed her eyes and breathed in deeply, licking her lips of the red substance. Another failure was headed her way and she set aside her self-doubts to mentally prepare herself. "What now?"_

" _The Sandaime's dead."_

 _A multitude of eyes popped open wide._

 _The Oto Commander turned towards the female advisor with an incredulous expression. Rei didn't really know how to respond to that, the news having been delivered so flatly and suddenly. Seeing the disgraceful open mouthed state his commander was in, one of the advisors cleared his throat loudly._

 _Coming out of her stupor, Rei snapped her jaw shut and narrowed her eyes in suspicion._

" _How is that a problem? I usually categorize the death of an enemy Kage as one hell of a success."_

 _The woman shifted awkwardly and it was then that Rei spotted the palpable fear in her eyes. She approached the younger kunoichi and leaned in to whisper, her face away from the prying curiosity of the Suna shinobi. This wasn't for their knowledge._

" _Orochimaru-sama has been…incapacitated." She whispered nervously._

 _Rei paused, her expression never changing except for a small flinch at the corner of her lips. The urge to grab the woman and shake her was great. "What happened?"_

" _The Sandaime used some sort of jutsu on him and he doesn't seem to be able to use his arms at the moment." The woman explained at the best of her ability as she looked through the moth's vision. She couldn't understand what happened, since in one moment Orochimaru was wining and then the Sandaime used some jutsu that downed the two former Hokages and arm by arm, impaired the Snake Sanin._

 _Panic settled in as Rei realized that if true, her sensei was now in a very vulnerable position, and only had four shinobi there to protect him._

" _Konoha shinobi are surrounding the Sound Four's barrier and I'm not sure how much longer they can keep it upright."_

 _Rei hissed as she felt the Cursed Seal flare to life. Her emotions were starting to affect her and not in a good way. With gritted teeth, she forced the dark chakra back and focused on the woman._

" _Get that moth over to Orochimaru. I need to speak to him urgently."_

" _Yes, Commander."_

 _Once the moth connected, it flew off the kunoichi and landed on one of Rei's naked fingers. She put as much distance between herself and the others as she noticed curiosity turn to worry and the Suna shinobi's to suspicion._

 _Rei stopped near the edge of the rooftop, her mind open and eyes fixed on the distant building of the arena. "_ Sensei? Give me orders. I'm running blind here."

 _It was downright unnatural how hearing the Snake Sanin's voice calmed her down. His voice was strained, exhausted and angry, but still strong and commanding._ "What is the situation, Rei?"

 _Rei bit the inside of her cheek, dreading to answer the Sanin. But as his appointed commander, she had no choice but to acknowledge his question._ "We're…losing. Half of our forces are dead or incapacitated and the other half is on the verge of joining the rest. The Suna shinobi are dropping like flies and without Gaara we don't have a chance in turning the tide."

 _The silence that followed from the other side was deafening. Rei was sure that right now her sensei was either thinking of all the outcomes possible or having a furious breakdown and planning out her agonizing punishment. The latter had Rei almost bolting in dread._

 _But what the Oto swordsman did not expect were his next words._

"Sound the retreat."

 _Brows furrowed in confusion._ "…Sensei?"

"Give the order, Rei." _This time, his order was absolute and a bit more urgent._ "I don't wish to lose the entire of my military force."

 _It was a viable choice. The only one they had. If they continued, their shinobi would die. But that didn't mean Rei had to like it. Running away with her tail between her legs was not an achievement she could brag about._

Kami…All that planning, all that sweat and blood just went down the drain within thirty minutes.

"What about Sunagakure?" _Rei asked as she remembered their 'allies'._

 _The derisive snort that followed informed the girl of her sensei's opinion._ "What about them?"

"I understand, sensei."

 _The Sanin's presence disappeared from her mind and Rei turned towards the other shinobi in the barrier's space. Appearing as normal as she could seem, she sent a short and succinct message through the moths present on only her advisors._

"Kill them."

 _The Oto ninjas eyes sparked with ominous intent as they waited for their leader's signal. The moment her foot shifted a few millimeters in preparation was when the others brandished their weapons and jumped the Suna shinobi. The desert dwellers never had the chance to defend themselves as they did not anticipate the sudden turn. The Suna Commander was the only one that managed to avoid the kunai aimed at his throat and stabbed the shinobi in the shoulder. In anger, he watched as his men died one by one and with a flick of his wrist, unsheathed his scimitar, ready to fight till his last breath._

 _But what the Commander failed too late to sense was the young swordsman that appeared behind him via Body Flicker. The moment he felt the faint killing intent was when a katana ran through his chest, right through the center of his heart. The short few conscious seconds he had left were lived in shock and the feeling of betrayal._

I hope you burn in hell, you bitch.

 _The lifeless body slumped on the rooftop, a trickle of blood leaving his parted lips as marble eyes stared into nothingness. Rei crudely retrieved her katana from the man's back and cleaned the stained blade on the dead man's clothes._

 _A short check on her shinobi told her that they were all in one piece, only sporting some artificial wounds._

" _Sound the retreat. All ties are to be cut with the Suna shinobi." She ordered them somberly as she sheathed her katana. "Tell our troops to pass the border into Sound and bunker down in one of the assigned safe bases. Tell them to follow procedure in case they are pursued."_

 _The Oto ninja nodded as they sent out orders via their moths. This was a grand scale operation which needed their careful attention. Rei also sent her own commands to the platoons she oversaw._

 _Once all shinobi had been informed, Rei signaled the barrier team to dissolve their jutsu. The Oto ninja jumped from the roof as they made their exit to coordinate their subordinates out of Fire._

 _Rei remained for a moment behind to overlook the half demolished village. Her lips downturned in disappointment as her eyes narrowed._

" _Remember this day, Rei." She whispered to herself. "The day we won a great victory and lost a great battle at the same time."_

* * *

It took less than two days for Sasuke to finally use the moth.

His voice had been tense as he gave her the location of Team Gai's—whoever they were—usual training ground. He wanted to speak with her there, away from prying eyes and his interfering teammates. Rei had been keeping track of the boy via moth these past two days and was aware of Sasuke's sudden need to meet with her. It was because of his fight with his sensei. Well, fight was a bit too much—more like a one-sided argument with an unbending, unresponsive Hatake.

Rei was sure that that moment was what broke the camel's back.

The Oto swordsman waited patiently on the outgrown roots of a large tree. While it poked her back uncomfortably, she was too lazy to move to a parallel root.

It didn't matter though, as the young Uchiha appeared not two minutes later on the field in a gust of leaves and smoke.

Rei peered from behind her dark lenses and watched as the boy's eyes found her and his body moved within a safe distance. He was dressed differently today, more like how he had been in the final stage of the Chunin Exam, all in black. It made him look more gloomy and dangerous.

"So, what is it you have to speak to me about?" The Oto swordsman raised her upper half and placed her elbows casually on her knees, with her chin in one of her palms.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes, but the anger present in his dark orbs wasn't directed at her. He spat as he turned from her and started pacing irately in front of the swordsman. His fists clenched and unclenched as he fought to find his words.

"Kakashi-sensei refuses to advance my training. He says I need to take things slowly."

"Well, that's not unexpected." Rei drawled as her eyes followed the boy's erratic movements.

Sasuke continued as if not even hearing the girl…which he probably didn't. "When I asked him why, he said that I'm still too young _and_ that I need time to grow. I don't have the time to take things slowly!" He shouted in anger as his Sharingan flared out of emotional reflex. "I need to get stronger right now! My enemies won't wait for me to grow a few inches taller!"

"If I was a lesser person, I would say 'I told you so', but I think the situation speaks for itself." The swordswoman ignored the seething glare and rose to her feet. Nonchalantly, she placed her hands into her coat pockets and gave the boy an impatient look. "So, did you just call me here to rant?"

"If I accepted Orochimaru's proposition what could he offer me?"

"The ability to control the Cursed Seal, learn more advanced and deadlier jutsus, break the barriers and go well beyond your capabilities. I am a prime example of that. Under Orochimaru's teachings I've pushed past the limits my age imposed, and I'm still growing more powerful with each day."

"Fight me."

"No."

Sasuke smirked haughtily. "Why? You afraid?"

"Brat, I would floor you within minutes." She answered darkly. What she wouldn't give to wipe that smirk off his face with the sharp end of her katana. "I'm not fighting you because I'm wary of attracting attention."

Sasuke grunted in dissatisfaction. He wasn't sure if he even had wanted to fight her or he just said it because it was an impulse for him. The young Uchiha paced slowly and overlooked the training area with despondent eyes. The village was slowly starting to feel more constricted to him, his sensei overbearing and his teammates frustrating.

He was unsure what to do and it was messing with his mind more than he liked.

"Why me?" He whispered numbly at her.

"Because he sees the potential you have. And Orochimaru is always on the lookout for new potential."

His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "There's more to this than that. You're hiding something."

Silence was his answer.

"He wants something, doesn't he?"

A brow rose cynically. "Are you expecting me to answer that?"

"No." He snorted in distaste. "Everyone wants something. I don't expect Orochimaru to train me out of the goodness of his heart."

Rei started snickering, but ceased once she noticed the annoyed look on the genin's face. "Sorry, I was just trying to imagine Orochimaru with a heart."

 _That would be leg-breaking funny._

Rei's amusement faded when Sasuke's eyes widened and he grabbed the side of his neck. The Oto swordsman could see the boy's teeth grind together to the point of almost chipping as the pain kicked in.

"It's only going to get worse." She watched apathetically as the boy bended over himself, pained grunts and hisses escaping his tightly pressed lips. Rei pulled out from her inner coat pockets her smokes and lit one up. Taking a drag out of her cigarette, she almost felt refreshed. "The Cursed Seal of Heaven is like an open wound, with time it's only going to get infected and eventually kill you. Bit by bit, you will lose your sanity and the violent nature of the seal will take over. Your identity will fade, your body will rot, and no amount of healing will restore you back."

Jaded eyes followed the boy's erratic breathing from behind black tinted sunglasses. Sasuke was now kneeling on the ground, curled up on himself.

"There's no one in this village capable of teaching you how to control that volatile chakra. Hatake tried to seal it up, but failed spectacularly." Smoke trailed from her nostrils like a coal factory. "Orochimaru is the only person that can show you since he is its creator."

The Uchiha's head moved enough so one of his eyes could focus on her. Even through the cloud of pain fogging his vision, he could still see her indifference at his situation. As the pain minutely subsided, his strength of mind hardened. With determination he rose to his feet, although shakily. There was a fine sheet of cold sweat all over his body and he felt like he had just ran the entire length of Fire.

These episodes were getting worse with each day and he didn't know how long he would be able to fight them.

"Mitarashi...Anko…can show me." He said between pants. The crazy proctor was already teaching him how to calm himself down during an episode.

"The reject?" Rei snorted rudely. "Mitarashi chose to forgo using the seal and with time it receded." Orochimaru said so himself when he tried to manipulate it during the Forest trial. "Considering that she was among the first test subjects, Orochimaru never got around to teaching her how to actually use it. She is a waste of time."

The look she gave him was similar to the conniving one he witnessed in Orochimaru. "The way I see it you only have one choice."

"Fall directly into that mad man's hands?" Sasuke spat sardonically.

"Something like that." The evil little smirk fell off her lips for the next part. "Look, I've survived ten years with him and I'm still in one piece." _Mostly_. "I'm not saying that it isn't risky, because it is. My sensei is not a man you wish to turn your back on, but he is the person you should seek if you wish to overcome this world. However…he does require something of all his shinobi. 'To receive something you must first sacrifice something in return'." How many times had she heard and spoken that line? "In exchange for power, I lost my freedom." _Among other things._ "You will lose many of the things you took for granted in this village, but you will gain the power to destroy your brother."

Now was the time. She needed to hammer in the last nail.

"Tell me, Sasuke…What is your purpose?"

The boy gave her a confused look. "What?"

Rei threw her cigarette away. "Your purpose in life, what is it? Is it to live a cozy and happy life next to your friends, or will you seek retribution for those that can't do so anymore?"

Sasuke's resolved wavered at the onslaught of questions, but then memories of that night flashed and his eyes blackened as his face turned to stone. "I—"

The swordsman rapidly snapped to her feet, startling the genin from his words. Sasuke watched as she settled her gaze behind her, a hawkish aspect to her mannerism.

"What is it?"

"There are two chakra signatures approaching. One of them is animal, the other Jonin, and—"

Rei titled her head in thought. There was an amount of chakra concentrated on the left side of the face, specifically the eye, that was continually flowing. It hit her then who it was. She had been sensing that chakra for the past several weeks.

"It's Hatake."

"Shit." Sasuke's eyes widened as he knew nothing good could come out of this. Kakashi couldn't find him here with an Oto-nin. "You have to go."

"Too late." Rei said as she took a more casual stance, completely difference from her usual rigid posture.

She had planned for the eventuality that she would come in contact with the Uchiha's sensei or his teammates. The other genins would be easy to fool. Hatake not so.

Not a few seconds later and the infamous 'Kakashi of the Sharingan' appeared before their eyes, accompanied by what seemed to Rei like a hairless rat with too much surplus of skin.

 _Eeww…_

Hatake waved to Sasuke as he casually approached them, his other hand in his pocket. "Ohayo, Sasuke-kun. You're late for training." His singular gaze then traveled to the lone female. "Oh, and who is this?"

"Hi! My name's Aiko."

Sasuke's eyes widened for a second. If he didn't posses more self-control he would have fallen on his ass from the 180 turn in personality. The Oto soldier was all smiles and…coy gestures.

"Ohayo, Aiko-san." Kakashi didn't seem perturbed by the girl's pep. "Was I interrupting something?"

Instantly, she blushed, knotting her fingers in front of her. It reminded Sasuke of the Hyuuga heir.

"Ah, no. I just wanted to talk to Sasuke-san." Her eyebrow twitched faintly as the small mutt was now sniffing her leg. She desperately wanted to kick it. "I saw his fight with the Suna ninja during the Chunin Exams and I just thought…well, I—"

"Ah, I see." Kakashi nodded understandingly as he cupped his chin, ignoring Pakkun's hound behavior. "Smitten, were you? Sasuke-kun sure has his way with the younger female population."

Rei's smile almost faltered. _I'll dismember you and watch you bleed to death._

"Ah, no. I just wanted to know if there was a chance he could spar with me. You see, I want to take the Chunin Exam and I'm afraid I'm not strong enough. I just wanted a few pointers so I can pass the tests." Rei's expression then turned worried. "I didn't know he was supposed to be training with his own team. I'm so sorry."

She did the customary apologizing bow, but she wished to all that was holy that she could just kick this Jonin a few kilometers away so she could finish her talk with the Uchiha.

"Oh, it's not a problem." Kakashi's lone eye closed merrily. "I just whished my own apprentice would have told me this from the beginning instead of making me come look for him." His attention then shifted to his pupil, effectively putting him on the spot. "Well, Sasuke-kun. Won't you answer…?"

"Aiko."

"Right."

Sasuke seemed lost on what to say, but he knew that he couldn't remain silent lest he make his sensei suspicious. So he responded in the only way Sasuke Uchiha could.

"I'm not wasting my time on some weakling."

Fainting a hurt expression, 'Aiko' took a step back. "Oh…Well, I just thought—"

"You thought wrong." Sasuke dismissed her.

"I…I think I should go." Her voice trembled. Rei knew that she couldn't remain here any longer. Whatever hopes she had of continuing their conversation, died. "Sorry to have bothered the both of you."

Offering a polite goodbye, Rei turned around and briskly walked away from them, aware of their eyes following.

 _At least I'm away from that ugly dog._

Kakashi's lone eye remained on the girl until she was out of sight. Sasuke couldn't see it, but he had a contemplative look about him.

"Hmmm…" The jutsu thief turned to his apprentice. "That was rather cruel of you. There are other ways of letting a girl down, you know?"

The Uchiha boy snorted. "Like I care."

"Strange, though." With just those two aloof words, Sasuke was back on edge. "The fact that the two of you would meet here, on Gai's training grounds. It's on the opposite side of the village, away from us."

"I wanted to train by myself when she found me."

"I see." Kakashi nodded slowly, before chirping happily. "Well, that's not going to happen. Teams train together after all."

Sasuke rolled his eyes at his sensei's bipolar moods and disappeared out of sight to join Naruto and Sakura. He was still exhausted from his earlier episode and his nerves were left frazzled after the conversation between him and the Oto female.

With Sasuke gone, Pakkun voiced his thoughts. "Kakashi, that girl smelled strange."

A dusty white brow rose. "Care to elaborate?"

"She smells… _tainted_." The small pug wrinkled his snout in distaste. "Like Sasuke does now. Like Anko."

Kakashi's lone eye darkened and returned to the spot where he last saw 'Aiko'. It just had to be something to ruin his day. And it was such a lovely morning…

"Pakkun, can you track the girl down?"

"Keh." The ninken grumbled. "Do you even have to ask?"

"My bad." The corner of his eye crinkled. "Find her and don't let her out of your sight."

* * *

Hours passed swiftly as day turned into night.

Sasuke stood in the center of his old home, reminiscing that horrific night all over again. The living room, like all rooms in the house, had been covered in sheets. Everything looked abandoned with finger wide dust settled over. The young Uchiha knew that being here caused more damage than good, but he couldn't help it. It was like scratching at a mosquito bite, it didn't make it go away just made you feel better for a few moments.

Did it make him feel better being here? No, but that was alright. He needed that feeling so he wouldn't forget why he was training so hard. So he wouldn't forget why he needed to kill his brother.

"You know, having to dodge a slobbering, rat-like dog is not how I thought I would spend my day."

Sasuke jumped in surprise, his Sharingan activating reflexively. Turning around, he spotted the Otogakure swordsman seated on the sheet-covered couch like she owned the damn thing. Her left arm was draped over the back and her right leg was crossed over the knee with her other arm settled over it. The picture of nonchalance.

"How did you know I was going to be here?" His voice came out more high pitched than he would have liked, but he felt indignant. She was an unwelcomed guest in his family house.

While he couldn't see the pointed look from behind her dark lenses, he felt it. "I've had you under surveillance for weeks, _genius_. I know that you visit your former compound every night at ten. Don't understand why, this place is depressing as hell."

She made her point when she pointed towards the particular large dark stain on the living room floor. It didn't take an effort to know that was where someone died rather gruesomely. And the girl had a pretty good idea who.

"Is there something you wanted or are you just here to annoy me?" Sasuke exhaled out heavily and in frustration. How the hell had she gotten in here without him noticing?

Her eyes left the old blood on the floor and focused on the boy drenched in the shadows. "We didn't get to finish our discussion thanks to your sensei. He even sent that damned rodent after me."

 _Rodent? Ah…_ "Did you lose Pakkun?"

"Would I be here if I didn't?" She fished out a cigarette and lit it up, the small shine from the lighter illuminating her face eerily. "Went straight back to my inn room, cleaned it out and went underground. Metaphorically speaking."

She inhaled deeply out of her cigarette and exhaled out a large stormy cloud. "And now thanks to your nosy sensei, I have to be extra careful when going outside. He's probably already figured out I'm from Oto and he'll most likely tighten his grip on you."

Sasuke scrunched up his nose at the girl's nasty habit. The house had been a smoke free zone and he liked it that way. "He _has_ been keeping an extra eye on me. I'm never alone now. Either Kakashi or Naruto or Sakura are with me at all times."

"He's most likely afraid I'll try to kidnap you." She shook her head at the recent complication. "I'm surprised you're not being followed by some Konoha shinobi right now."

Pale eyes wandered as the brain contemplated their situation. She did not like this house. Too many ghosts here. Rei wondered how it must have felt coming home after a normal day only to find your family slaughtered at the hands of your older sibling.

 _Must have hurt…_

"So…" Smoke escaped from between parted lips. "Did you think of an answer to my question?"

The boy nodded after a short pause and crossed the room to the dusted window.

"This was my home. My father and his father grew up here, and his ancestors before that. And my own family would have if it hadn't been for—"

Sasuke closed his eyes and shook his head as memories threatened to engulf him.

"I used to watch the compound streets from the window in my room every evening. I enjoyed seeing my clan go about their business without a care in the world. They reminded me of worker bees in a hive. The whole compound was filled with life around sundown and I couldn't wait for the next day, even knowing that it would be the same people and the same routine." Charcoal eyes focused on the Oto swordsman with a sharp intensity. "These are the kind of things you miss once they are taken from you."

Silently he walked towards the girl. "My brother killed my family, my entire clan in the span of one night. Power…" A humorless huff escaped his throat. "That's what drove him to do it. And now he wants to kill me too."

Another step.

"My purpose? My purpose is to show my brother the same courtesy he's shown me."

Crimson bled into black and created a whirlpool of demonic colors. It made the swordsman uncomfortable and she minutely shifted so one of her hands could reach her katana. Just in case.

"For every Uchiha he's killed, I'll stab him twice. For my family, I'll cut off his limbs and gouge out his eyes. For my suffering, I will flay him alive just so he can feel an ounce of my pain!"

Sharingan was fully out and flaring like hellfire. The boy's features twisted into something dark and ugly. If you looked at him now you couldn't even tell that he was merely thirteen. The dimness of the room didn't help as shadows danced across his face, accentuating the darkness in his soul. Lips were twisted in a savage snarl, white teeth showing like a wild animal.

Rei mentally smirked. _So this is your face…_

"Not strong enough? The day we will clash will be the day he will know true fear." His clenched fist struck against his chest. " _I_ will make him regret ever having been born!"

Rei's next words came out in a grave whisper as if afraid to disturb the mausoleum of a house. "To seek the path of vengeance is to walk a mountain of skeletons. Are you prepared for that? Even if it means sacrificing your own teammates? Your village?"

"I'll watch this whole world burn if it means killing my brother." Black tomoes started spinning from the high emotions. "Tell your master that my answer is yes."

It took everything in her power not to grin like a Cheshire cat. It wouldn't do to be so giddy.

"Alright then." Rei rose to her feet and threw her cigarette filter away. It died a long time ago. "Here's what's going to happen. In two days, you will be at the northern gate at midnight sharp where four Oto shinobi will be waiting for you. You'll recognize them once you see them. Don't overpack, take only what is necessary for a few days run. My team will escort you across the border into Rice Country where we will rendezvous and from there—"

"I thought you were going to escort me." He looked suspiciously at her.

"You thought wrong. I will only meet up with you half-way." She traversed the length of the room to the exit. "Act normal around your team, especially your sensei. Don't give them a reason to grow suspicious. We need a good head start before your Kage sends out shinobi to retrieve you."

Adjusting her coat, she looked out into the night for any disturbances. Turning to the boy, she gave him one last instruction. "The Sound Four are a bunch of arrogant hooligans, but they listen to orders. Especially Orochimaru's. They will not harm you, otherwise they will answer to me and this time, sensei won't be able to save them."

And _that_ was a promise.

Rei smirked deviously. "I will see you at the border and from there, the beginning of a new day."

* * *

Sasuke let out the breath he didn't even know he was holding in.

With heavy muscles, he dropped to the floor and remained like that for almost a half hour. His breathing was labored and he could feel the beginnings of a headache. His mind was reeling over his decision and the effects it will have on him and everyone else.

Was this the right thing to do? He had thought over, under, sideways of it. He was still unsure of his decision. He knew what kind of person Orochimaru was. The kind you never want to be around. Ever. And if the girl had been around the Snake Sanin for a decade it meant that some of his traits must have rubbed off on her. As such, he didn't exactly trust her. There was something Orochimaru wanted from him and it wasn't going to be good for his health. That's why he would have to be extra careful when he steps foot in Otogakure.

What will happen to him here? Will Konoha place him under the category of missing-nin? Who will come after him? Naruto most likely. The dobe had always been too stubborn for his own good. Will Kakashi-sensei come also?

What happens if these 'Sound Four' fail and he gets dragged back to the village? The Oto ninja seemed sure of herself that nothing will disrupt their plans. He wasn't. She didn't know his team. They could be predictably unpredictable.

Sasuke ran a tired hand over his features. So many probables and unknowns left him in a state close to vomiting. He did not want to run half the country only to be brought back here where he knew he wouldn't have a second chance of leaving anytime soon. He'll be watched like a bird in a cage. His team will never trust him again. Sasuke just knew that Naruto would stick to him like flies on shit.

The thought brought on a rather foul grimace to his lips.

But what the strange part was, was that Sasuke didn't care. He didn't care that his teammates will suffer. He didn't care that he will leave this village behind. After everything that has happened, there was nothing left for him here and while having a few people that gave a shit about him was nice, it wasn't enough to make him stay.

His goal overpowered his sentimental side.

Sauke took in a deep breath and swore, he felt ten pounds lighter. He was leaving. He won't have to pass streets, corners, parks, places where memories of his clan haunted him daily. He'll be free of that.

Yes, it was time to go. The path of an avenger is a solitary one.

He will overcome Orochimaru and then hunt his brother down. And then…then he will finally have some peace of mind.

* * *

It was a beautiful night. The stars were twinkling in the vast obscure canvas making them appear like tiny diamonds. It was nights like these that Rei loved. The quiet brought a strange sort of calm to her soul.

It also helped that she was sitting in a rather discreet place away from the hustle of the village. Nakano Shrine had been untouched for quite some time, so it was here that Rei made camp.

From her vantage point, Rei had monitored the young Uchiha's movements. He had remained in his former home for thirty minutes before finally deciding to leave.

 _Poor boy._ He was going to die soon. _Orochimaru will wear his skin like a pro._

Rei shook her head, shooing away the sadistic images that last thought conjured.

With precise flicks of her arms a new moth appeared , this one a bright red color with specs of orange and yellow. Rei waited for the connection between her and her sensei to click so she could relay the news.

" _Rei?"_

The swordsman frowned. Orochimaru's voice seemed strained and slightly in pain. His arms probably hurt again.

" _Give the Sound Four the go. I need them in Konoha within two days, no later than that."_

There was a slight pause before the Machiavellian chuckle of her sensei's rang. _"That is great news, Rei. They will depart in half an hour."_

" _How long are you giving them?"_ She needed a timeframe so she could plan ahead.

" _Three days is the limit. I expect them and you to be here in two."_

 _Of course_ , Rei rolled her eyes.

A short pause _. "Does he suspect anything?"_

Rei snorted. _"Wouldn't you?"_ The swordsman started pacing, her eyes trained on the village below her _. "It doesn't matter, either way. He'll be out cold in the container."_

Lighting up a new cigarette, Rei departed from Nakano Shrine and stuck to the back alleys. _"I'm going to leave Konoha and head for the outpost right now."_

" _Two days, Rei."_

The tone in which he spoke told Rei that the consequences of failing won't be to her liking.

" _I understand."_


	3. The Beginning of the End

_**Note:**_ Can someone please tell me how I can post a link on my profile?!

I have drawings of Rei that I want to show so you can have a better understanding of what she looks like, but every time I try it doesn't appear. I have an account on DeviantArt but I can't post the fucking link! And now I have to resort to just posting on the cover image which you can't fucking see because it's too damn small! Someone please help. Rei is going to change in appearance over the story timeline and I really want to show that. A written description is not good enough for me!

Feeling muchos pissed.

Anyways, enjoy the new chapter.

 _ **Story and characters belong to Masashi Kishimoto, except for my OC's of course.**_

* * *

 _ **Otogakure - Three years ago**_

 _Light blue eyes observed the people fighting below with a large degree of disinterest. They were all brutes that ripped and shredded. Nothing original._

" _Why am I here?" She asked the two men that accompanied her on the balcony._

" _Because I ordered you to." Orochimaru frowned at her before his attention returned to the battle. One of his failed experiment subjects just chopped a kunoichi's legs off. He chuckled in good nature._

" _Right…I keep forgetting that one part." Rei sighed and crossed her arms over the railing. Placing her chin atop them, she continued her vigil._

 _Orochimaru had called her and Kimimaro to witness the result of the 'arena'. The arena was a just a way for Orochimaru to dispose of his failed experiments. He pitted them against one another so he didn't have to kill them himself. Sometimes, if anyone was left standing they would be inducted into his ninja ranks. Only the strongest for him._

" _This is so barbaric." Rei shook her head in disapproval. This was a waste of time and shinobi._

" _It is necessary." Kimimaro said as he grimaced at the bloodbath below. He never did like this aspect of being a shinobi. "The weak need to be plucked like weeds less they spoil the garden."_

" _Well said, Kimimaro." Orochimaru grinned, before eying his other pupil. "Why can't you show the same optimism, Rei?"_

" _I have sense, that's why." Rei grumbled underneath her breath._

 _Rei's interest peaked when four young shinobi distinguished themselves among the crowd. One of them was a girl that concealed her dark pink hair beneath a cap. One was a shinobi double in height and width. Another was a freak of nature that looked like the embodiment of Shiva. And the last, and freakiest, were two Siamese twins._

" _Those four seem to have some potential." Rei pointed out each of the ninjas in mind. For kids barely older than eleven they seemed to be the toughest of the lot._

 _Orochimaru nodded with a grin. "Hmmm…indeed. They're rather enthusiastic, don't you think?" The Snake Sanin turned towards his male pupil. "Who are they?"_

 _Kimimaro looked through the files he kept under his arm. It contained all the profiles of the subjects below. Flipping through them he found the four._

" _Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon, Jirobo and Kidomaru." He read the names without much inflection._

" _Are those two conjoined siblings?" Rei eyed the_ _child with two heads_ _._ Ugly little bastard.

 _Kimimaro nodded. "Something of the sort. Sakon and Ukon posses a kekkei genkai that allows them to separate into two entities."_

" _Cute." Rei sarcastically said._

 _The fight bellow was becoming more intense. Blood splattered on the ground and the walls of the arena with vigor. The ninjas were fuelled with bloodlust so high that Rei could actually taste it in the back of her throat._

 _A leg. An arm. A head. All were being removed from bodies and flying around as if toys. It would have been funny if it weren't for the desperation felt in the arena. Nobody wanted to die today._

 _Rei loved fighting, but she preferred it when it wasn't set for the entertainment of others, i.e. her sensei. As much as Orochimaru insisted that this was an important process, it was more of a show to him. Something to amuse himself with when bored. He was sadistic like that._

 _A howl. One born out of victory._

 _The swordsman smirked when she saw the last men standing…or children. The four stood, panting and sweating and covered in blood. The one that howled had been the Siamese twins. The euphoria of surviving a death game rising in them along with the knowledge that they still held breath._

 _The four pre-teens stood tall, covered in blood and gore. They looked at each other. Tensing, they dropped into a defensive stance, ready to kill once again._

" _Enough." Orochimaru suddenly shouted. With a sly grin, he turned towards his students. "I think I found some new recruits."_

 _Rei scoffed as she watched Orochimaru jump over the railing and land on the ground, Kimimaro following right behind. With a grunt, Rei joined her sensei._

 _Orochimaru stood in front of the four teens while Kimimaro was positioned slightly behind him, stance rigid with his back straight as a board. Rei walked passed her sensei and circled the younglings. Different colored eyes followed the teen's movements, stiffening at the predatorial gaze that analyzed them._

" _Excellent. You fought memorably and I applaud you,—" Orochimaru grinned as he saw the hopeful looks about the children. Those same looks all but disappeared after his next words "—for experiments fighting equally inexperienced experiments. You still have much to learn. However, you now have the honor of studying under my expertise."_

 _Rei scoffed as she joined Kimimaro._

" _This is bull." She whispered to him as Orochimaru continued with his speech. "I just know that sensei's going push those brats on us and we're going be the ones that have to deal with them."_

 _The young zealot's lips quirked for a moment. "Is that so bad?"_

 _The girl gave him a look as if he should know better. "Are you kidding me? I didn't even want to train with you when you first came here and now I have to babysit some sniveling toddlers."_

" _You know, we are almost the same age as them." Kimimaro pointed out nonchalantly. For his little comment, Rei punched him in the arm. Rubbing the ache, Kimimaro eyed her with a small frown. Really, while possessing skills far beyond her age, Rei still had the mind of a child at times. "Regardless of what you like, we will follow orders if that is what Orochimaru-sama whishes."_

" _Kiss-ass." Rei spat derisively._

Kami, he really should start thinking for himself for once. _That was one of the aspects she hated about the boy. While Rei was also loyal to Orochimaru, she still questioned his orders. She was not foolish enough to follow anyone blindly, especially the Snake Sanin. She knew him too well._

 _They're conversation was abruptly ended as they heard their names called out._

" _These two behind me are Rei and Kimimaro, my prized students and most valuable shinobi." The Snake Sanin gave them a reproachful glare as the two hadn't been following his words, instead counseling among themselves. "Rei will join you in your training."_

" _No freakin' way." She flatly refused before Kimimaro even had a chance to stop her. "I don't want to fight a bunch of mutant toddlers!"_

 _At the same time, Kidomaru impulsively shouted out. "This is bullshit! I came here to be taught by the Snake Sanin, not some girl!"_

 _The girl with the beanie frowned at the sight of Rei. "I'm not fighting some bitch that looks barely older than twelve."_

 _Kimimaro glared at the pink-haired girl. "Show some respect. You are still weaklings here and can be easily replaced."_

 _Orochimaru quietly watched as his newest ninja began arguing with his older ninja._

 _A languid blink._

 _A dangerous smirk._

 _Everyone's tongues stilled as they felt a chilling, murderous aura engulf them. Rei, while acquainted with this feeling, still felt her survival instincts kick in and reverted to a more submissive appearance._

 _Snake-like pupils narrowed ominously as he eyed the four. Whatever bravado they had all but evaporated in the wake of the Sanin's anger. "You four have no say in what you will or will not do. The moment you stepped foot in my village is the moment you relinquished your freedom. My word is_ law _. Learn that quickly or die painfully."_

 _The man's gaze then shifted to his oldest student. He should have known that Rei would react poorly, and she should have known better than to defy him. "Rei, you will train with them and you don't get to refuse. Do you understand me?"_

" _Yes, sensei." She would have agreed to almost anything just to have the Sanin's fury redirected from her. He could be a very scary man when he wanted to be._

" _Good." The dangerous mood suddenly defused and breathing was made easy again. "Tomorrow at first light you will begin your training."_

 _Orochimaru eyed his newest recruits with shrewd interest and the smirk that spread his lips sent a shiver down their spines._

" _The Sound Four. From now on that's what you will be called."_

 _Orochimaru gave his ninja one last approving look before departing. He knew from the moment those four survived that they would become valuable under his command. All they needed now was a bit of discipline._

 _Once the Sanin was out of sight, hostility returned to their little group. All eyed each other critically and with malicious intent. They did not like each other and they were not afraid to show it. Only Kimimaro was removed as he watched the territorial behavior impassively. He had no strife with his new colleagues._

" _Try not to die within the first day, you little shits." Rei so happily 'advised' them._

" _You are the one that needs to worry, not us, bitch." Tayuya replied with a sneer._

 _Rei smirked nastily. "Keh, mouthy little fire-crotch, aren't you?"_

" _Kami, for girls you two are foul mouthed." The large shinobi, Jirobo, crossed his arms over his chest in disgust. He hated when people cussed, especially girls. In his eyes, they were ugly._

" _Shut up, lardass!" Tayuya hissed at him like a wild bobcat. "Nobody asked you."_

 _Sakon shook his head—heads—at the others rash behavior. While he didn't like them, he knew that he would have to fight alongside them one day. He'd rather not burn the bridges just yet._

" _Enough." The cool, collected voice of Kimimaro ended the snapping of teeth. "Get the medics to tend to your wounds and then return to your quarters. You're going to have a busy day tomorrow; I suggest you get some rest."_

 _They hesitated, but ultimately listened and departed, leaving Kimimaro and Rei among the corpses._

" _I will kill them one day." Rei stated coldly, almost as if her hands were already wrapped around their necks._

 _Kimimaro sighed. "Diplomacy will never be your strong suit, senpai."_

 _Rei glared at him before departing._

Sound Four _, Rei thought,_ what a load of shit.

 _She knew at the bottom of her heart, that this was just the beginning. Neither she nor the Sound Four would ever find common ground. They would fight each other to the very end. And Rei would wait for the day they would cross the line and piss off her sensei._

— _Because then, she will be the one to hold the blade that will part their heads from their bodies._

* * *

Lids parted to reveal pale blue eyes.

"Commander."

A kunoichi was tentatively shaking her awake.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, Rei gruffly asked. "What is it?"

"The Sound Four are almost here."

She nodded in understanding and signaled the kunoichi to leave. Alone, the Oto swordsman leapt from the hammock she had been napping in and stretched her arms over her head. Hearing her bones pop was like music to her ears. There was something oddly satisfying at hearing bones right themselves after a good rest.

After a quick search, Rei found and lit up a cigarette. The second stage of her daily ritual. First—bone popping, second—cigarette.

She picked up her coat and sunglasses and left the small room.

As ordered, Rei had stationed at the southern border in preparation for the Uchiha's arrival. It had taken a day to reach the outpost and once she stepped foot inside, she leapt into the first comfortable place to fall asleep, which was a badly stitched hammock.

From the sun's position it was afternoon. That was probably the most she had ever slept in over seven months now.

Stepping outside on the deck, she overlooked the forest ahead of her. The southern outpost was a large circular building raised above ground, kept in the air by thick ropes and beams latched onto the many bulky branches surrounding them. The trees were exceptionally wide, strong and rich in foliage. A special seed stolen from Grass Country a long time ago.

Four chakra signatures rapidly approached the outpost. Rei leaned over the railing with her elbows atop it, casually smoking her cigarette. Two minutes was all it took before the silhouettes of the Sound Four to appear before her eyes.

"Well, well, well…you actually made it in a reasonable amount of time. Color me impressed." She mockingly applauded them.

Jirobo nodded respectfully. "Rei-sama."

Kidomaru, Tayuya and Sakon/Ukon copied the gesture but said nothing.

Rei turned to face them, leaning her lower half against the railing. "I do hope this lucky streak continues until you reach Konoha. I would really _hate_ it if I find out that you made a detour somewhere and delayed the Uchiha's arrival to Oto."

"If that happens it's gonna be because of this fatass." Tayuya pointed towards the man in question.

Jirobo frowned at her. "I wish you would stop cussing, Tayuya. It's not ladylike."

Almost like routine, Tayuya replied in her normal fashion. "Fuck you and your mother."

That brought out a glare from the hefty teen.

"Damn, you are so annoying." Sakon eyed the girl in boredom as he craned his neck, mindful of his brother's head. "I swear, Tayuya, every time you open your mouth, I just know you're gonna piss off everyone around you."

"Eat shit, birdbrain."

And with that, the Sound Four start bickering among themselves, exhaustion from their hasty travel frazzling their nerves. Rei sighed as she had been through this a hundred times already. This is exactly why she hated these idiots.

A sharp whistle quieted them down. Just like dogs.

Rei glared at each of them separately. "Are you idiots done or would you like to continue this 'charming' banter of yours?"

Over the years, they had gotten quite good at masking their displeasure. They learned after a few lessons in 'discipline' to not rise to Rei's jabs anymore lest they be punished again. While she missed beating the crap out of them, Rei was relieved to have them obedient.

"Now, once you arrive in Konoha you will wait for the Uchiha at the northern gate. I assume you were all briefed on him?"

Nods.

"Good, saves me the trouble." Rei exhaled smoke though her nostrils. "You will escort him back here where I will take your place and take him back to Orochimaru. This way you will repel any Konoha ninjas that are idiotic enough to cross the border, and have a day's rest at the same time. Any questions?"

The only sound made was the noise of the forest.

Rei nodded as her eyes settled on the wooden container strapped to Jirobo's back. "So that's Orochimaru's container…"

She had never seen it before since she never used it. Circling Jirobo, she eyed the container shrewdly. It was littered with seals and tags, nothing grandiose about it.

Kidomaru approached and tapped against the container. "Yeah, we have to stick the brat inside after we give him some drug. He'll be out like a light."

"How long will it keep him subdued? I don't want any surprises."

Sakon grinned slyly as he moved the stray strands of hair that blocked his vision. "Don't fret, Commander. He'll still be out by the time you touch base."

"Alright then, rest for half an hour and then continue on your way." Rei said as she threw her finished cigarette over the banister.

Before the four of them could enter the outpost, Rei's dark tone froze them in their steps.

"There's one more thing…" The Sound Four watched as the teen's irises seem to freeze over with ominous intent. Darkness seemed to spread over her features almost like shadows, yet the sun was high in the sky. "If you harm one _single_ hair on that boy's head, I'm going to personally disembowel one of you and make the rest eat the innards. Do I make myself clear?

Her dark voice coupled with the visceral image her words conjured sent a chill down their spines.

They all nodded quickly.

"Good. See you in two days. _Don't_ fuck up."

* * *

"Why is it taking him so long?! Kimimaro was supposed to report in hours ago!"

Rei watched with a carefully controlled expression the monitor in front of her. Orochimaru and Kabuto were displayed on the medium sized screen. Her sensei was furious. He was pacing like a madman while breaking anything his hands touched.

"This isn't a simple mission, Orochimaru-sama. No doubt jonins along with Hatake Kakashi were sent to retrieve Sasuke. And I would wager my projects that the Jinchuriki is running right alongside them."

"That's why I sent them! The Sound Four along with Kimimaro were supposed to be strong enough to ensure the mission's success. They were supposed to be at the outpost with Sasuke a day ago!"

Rei had waited patiently and watched the Sound Four's progress via her moths. When Jirobo died at the hands of a young fat genin, Rei barely even blinked. He was the weakest of the lot and his arrogance led him to be killed by a small fry. When Kidomaru went down at the hands of the Hy _ū_ ga was when Rei's unease started. She immediately contacted Orochimaru to send Kimimaro. While Tayuya and Sakon/Ukon were still alive and running, she did not want to wager this situation. Too much was at stake.

Kimimaro had arrived at the outpost in less than half a day. Even sick he still managed to impress with his prowess. He had left soon after, not even remaining long enough to rest his limbs.

"As far as we know, Jirobo and Kidomaru are dead." Kabuto said as he rearranged his glasses. "Tayuya, Sakon and Ukon's status are unknown. And Kimimaro is an unpredictable ace. His illness could act up at any moment and kill him."

While her moths had transmitted Jirobo and Kidomaru's deaths, she had lost sight of the others. Someone—most likely the remaining Sound Four—had destroyed her moths, and such had been deprived of news. The moth that followed Kimimaro had also been crushed by said man. He apologized beforehand, saying he did not want an audience.

"Then maybe you shouldn't have sent him in the first place." Rei spat as she spoke after a long pause. She was still feeling resentful for being benched.

Kabuto frowned at the monitor, and in turn at her. "He is the back-up in case the Sound Four failed."

"I've been sitting in this outpost for three days now with my thumbs up my ass. I should have gone along with the Sound Four from the beginning. Then there wouldn't have been any problems and sensei would be happy as a clam in the Uchiha's body."

Kabuto's lenses flashed, some of his annoyance leaking. "You are needed to transport Sasuke back here without fail. The Sound Four along with Kimimaro would have been too exhausted to contain or carry him, much less fight off any stray Konoha shinobi."

"Don't give me that shit." Rei finally snapped. She had enough of this bullshit. "I can do all three and you know it. Unlike you, four-eyes, I don't start sweating at the sight of battle!"

With utter calm, Kabuto slid his glasses back on the bridge of his nose. "Maybe that is why Orochimaru relies on me for intelligence while you serve as the muscle."

If it weren't for Orochimaru's sudden bout of coughs and hacking, Rei's anger would have exploded and the 'words' that would have followed would have been rather _hostile_. Rei damned whatever entity was out there for separating her from Kabuto by hundreds of miles. She would have like to introduce him to her fists.

Blood dripped to the ground. The Snake Sanin spat crimson mixed with saliva and with a shaky hand wiped the corners of his mouth.

Rei, while worried at her sensei's weakened state, could only watch as Kabuto fretted around their leader. "Orochimaru-sama, you have to change bodies right now. There's no more time left."

"No!" The man firmly pushed the grey-haired doctor away. "I will have to wait another three years until I can switch hosts! It will happen the moment Sasuke gets here."

"I don't think you have that luxury anymore, sensei." Rei said somberly as she watched more blood leak from between his lips. She would rather have him wait than die right before her eyes.

"Rei is right. The body you currently inhabit has degenerated well beyond its limit. You cannot postpone this any longer. If you do, you will die." Kabuto reiterated his point, hoping that the Sanin would finally understand.

"Dammit…" Orochimaru feebly clenched his fists. This wasn't supposed to happen. He was supposed to have switched bodies with Sasuke's already. He was supposed to be in the possession of the Sharingan by now!

 _Dammit all to hell!_

"Fine." The Sanin resigned himself to his subordinates' pleas. "I will do the Living Corpse Reincarnation."

Both Kabuto and Rei breathed in relief as their sensei conceded. Saved Kabuto from having to knock the man out and force the jutsu upon him.

Vertical pupils encased in gold settled upon the image of Rei. Despite the man's current downturned mood and weakened state, the swordsman could still see the power and resolve within those eerie orbs.

"Rei, I want you to immediately depart. Find Sasuke and bring him here. Use the remaining Sound Four and Kimimaro as shields if you have to, I don't care! _Everyone_ is expendable. Do you understand, Rei?"

The teen smirked eagerly. "Yes, sir."

* * *

A blurry silhouette rushed through Rice's wild grass.

Rei ran at high speed, avoiding trees and other obstacles. She would arrive at the Valley of the End in a few minutes, and from there, step foot in Fire territory.

The Sound Four's last known location had been somewhere near the border. Rei would have to use her moths and her sensing abilities to find Kimimaro. The container, hopefully, was with him.

—She just needed the Uchiha. As her sensei said, the others were expandable.

A frown settled on her brow as her thoughts drifted to her last conversation with Kimimaro at the outpost.

" _Kimimaro."_

 _The man in question paused in drinking his water and nodded courteously. "It's good to see you, Rei-senpai."_

" _You look like shit." She said as her eyes did a full body perusal. He had arrived not five minutes ago and he looked worse than she remembered. A walking corpse._

" _Yes…" His pale grip on the bottle tightened making the plastic creak. "I don't think I'm long for this world. I believe this is the last time we will see each other."_

" _That's a shame." Rei said with little empathy. Losing Kimimaro would be a hard blow for Sound. He was one of the strongest shinobi they had. Damn his affliction for destroying such a fine example._

 _Worry overcame her before she could prevent it as a coughing fir overtook the albino ninja. One of her hands moved on their own towards the teen's back, likely in an attempt to sooth his ache, but stopped before making it obvious. What the hell was she doing?_

 _Rei settled back in her rigid composure and simply watched Kimimaro struggle to breath. Specks of blood littered his palm. The albino grimaced at the contrast between his skin and blood._

" _You don't have to do this, Kimimaro." Rei's words blurted out before she could stop them. The teen was in a very bad shape and some old part of her felt sorry for the boy that used to be her sparring partner and only companion of the same age. "If you continue, you're going to die. You're illness is too advanced at this stage. I can go in your stead. You can tell sensei that I ordered you to remain."_

 _A strange smile settled over the boy's lips. "I'm afraid that even if you gave me that order, I wouldn't follow it. I don't want to die in a sick bed, hooked to machines that are keeping my organs from rotting. I still have some use." He shook his head as resolve steeled his bright irises. "No…I will die like a shinobi befitting Orochimaru-sama's command. On my feet after I have completed my mission."_

" _You know, Kimimaro…if we had met in a different time and a different place, we might have been friends." Rei had often wanted to extend her hand to him, but her training and mindset had put an end to that._

— _You were alone in Sound, after all._

 _That strange smile turned into a peaceful one. "I have always considered you one, Rei-senpai."_

 _The mellow mood they settled into was abruptly halted as Kimimaro straightened out, the smile disappearing from his face as if it never happened. "I have to leave. I've lingered for far too long."_

 _The albino finished the rest of his water and stepped towards the edge of the outpost's deck._

" _Kimimaro…" Rei's no-nonsense tone stopped him mid-step. "If you find any of the Sound Four alive, kill them. Their services are no longer required in Oto."_

 _With an understanding nod, Kimimaro stepped on the railing. Green eyes seemed to brighten with life as they settled on Rei one last time. "Farewell, Rei. I hope we will meet each other again on the other side."_

 _The swordsman watched as the last of the Kaguya disappeared into the verdant foliage of the forest. He had appeared in her life like a ghost and left it just like one._

" _...Goodbye, Kimimaro."_

–You have proven your existence in my eyes.

Rei sighed heavily as she was brought out of her memory. That was just mere hours ago. And Rei had this inkling that Kimimaro was dead, that or dying.

 _Another one bites the dust…,_ The swordsman grimaced. _If it continues like this we're going to lose the entire of our force for the sake of one boy._

A familiar chakra surprised the Oto swordsman.

Rei picked up speed as she felt the Uchiha brat's presence nearby. She was almost at the Valley of the End.

What was he doing out of the container? The box would have made it impossible to sense anyone inside. The Uchiha's chakra would have been sealed along with his consciousness.

 _Fuck! Those idiots couldn't even do one thing right!_

It would have been much more efficient for a single person to stealthily get inside Konoha, capture the Uchiha boy and bring him to Otogakure, whenever he wanted to or not. But no, sensei wanted to send the Sound Four. To make up for the disappointment in the Konoha Crush. And as for Kimimaro…he was already with one foot in the grave, so sending him on this mission was killing two birds with one stone.

Rei propelled herself towards the branches as she reached the end of the forest. There, in front of her, were the gigantic statues of Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama, the forefathers of Konohagakure. And atop the head of Madara stood the last of the Uchiha, head held high.

With a quick flick of her fingers and a bit of blood, she summoned three moths.

"Find Kimimaro, Tayuya, Sakon/Ukon. I want to know what happened to them."

The moths quickly dispersed to the last known locations of the Sound Five.

Rei sharpened sight—this way she had a bird's eye view of the events. Zeroing on the boy's face, she now saw the source of the ominous chakra emanating from him. Half of his face was littered with the symbols of the cursed seal, his sclera black with a golden iris.

 _It seems he's in some mild form of control of it._

Sasuke was waiting for something that much she could tell. And in the next few minutes, the object of his linger appeared atop Hashirama's head, staring at the Uchiha with wide, determined eyes.

—Uzumaki Naruto, the Kyuubi Jinchuriki, and Uchiha Sasuke's soon to be former teammate.

Now, Rei was in a bit of a pickle here. She had two options: one—she could disturb their little get together and render the Uchiha unconscious and kill the Jinchuriki, or two—wait and see what happens.

Rei was a bit of a sucker for drama. She wanted to see what would happen between the two teammates, but if the boy ever came in danger of dying or losing, she would jump in.

Another moth was summoned and, this time, sent over to the statues to overhear the conversation between the two Konoha genins.

 _This should be interesting_ , Rei thought with a smirk.

The two genin's conversation revolved around why Sasuke was going to Orochimaru. The blonde shouted indignities as the raven did not care that Orochimaru was the one that killed the Third Hokage or demolished half the village. Sasuke wanted power, power he could never find in Konoha. The Jinchuriki didn't take that well.

The Uchiha grabbed the blonde by the throat and with strength fueled from the Cursed Seal punched the boy off the statue and into the watery depths below. It didn't take long for the Jinchuriki to resurface and attack with Kage Bunshin. While taken off guard from a surprise attack, Sasuke faltered but in the end he still managed to repel the blonde.

They stood eyeing each other, one up above while the other below, mirroring their standing in life.

Rei could almost feel the Jinchuriki's anger once Sasuke proclaimed that he would kill him and he was very serious about it. In response, Naruto asked desperately if he no longer considered them friends. He needed to know there was still something salvageable left in his teammate.

When Sasuke proclaimed that Naruto became his most precious friend, something about the way he said it made the Oto swordsman frown. His tone had been… _off_.

Soon they charged each other, punching and kicking and slicing each other to pieces. Both fighting for their heart's desire—the Jinchuriki for his friend's sanity and the Uchiha for vengeance.

 _It's beautiful_ , Rei thought with an awed smile. This was like something out of a story. Heroes. Villains. Anti-heroes. Betrayal. Battle. Too bad that the only way this will end is with the Jinchuriki's defeat or death.

The blonde screamed with all his might that if Sasuke won't come back on his own, then he'll beat him to a pulp. Rei smirked at the boy's audacity. But the moment Sasuke formed a Chidori and Naruto a Rasengan was when Rei got worried. The swordsman cussed when she saw the two ninja charge on the waterfall, their targets clear.

"Shit!"

Rei wouldn't have been able to reach them in time even if she tried. She watched as the two powerful jutsus clashed. A vortex of wind, lighting and water resulted, repelling the two genins like the same sides of a magnet. They skidded across the water, creating ripples along.

Her moth must have been caught in the blast because she suddenly lost contact with it. Now she was deaf to their voices.

Sasuke was the first to get up. Limping towards his teammate, he grabbed the blonde by the front of his jacket and lifted him out of the water. A second Chidori formed in the palm of his hand.

Rei's brows rose high at the sight of the Uchiha's Chidori going through the Jinchuriki's chest. He missed the heart and hit the lungs instead, courtesy to the blonde moving at the last second. Blood dripped down in rows across the blonde's blue and orange jacket, forever staining it. Rei could see even from her position the gaping hole in his chest.

The Oto swordsman was impressed. The Uchiha brat actually did it. He killed one of his teammates. She never thought that he would actually listen to her warning, about running over his friends to achieve his goal. It seems that whatever happened to him in that container changed his state of mind also.

Sasuke's other arm wrapped around the blonde's neck and squeezed. He never got the chance to finish the Jinchuriki off as Rei felt a sudden build up of chakra, and not just any normal chakra, but a dark, malicious one—one found only in Bijuus.

"Fuck!"

The teen cursed as red energy enveloped the blonde. The hot wave pushed the Uchiha away and he watched in fear as even more energy pulsated from his teammate, creating waves around him.

Alarm crawled up Rei's throat. The boy was summoning the Bijuu's chakra. She could see the way the energy was focusing on his wound and bit by bit, muscles and tissue regenerated.

–Claws and fangs and vertical pupils with crimson irises. The boy was dipping his fingers into the Bijuu's power.

The next several minutes consisted of the blonde beating the shit out of the confused and slightly afraid Uchiha.

Just then, the moth hidden in her coat sprang forth. Settling on her arm, Rei received information from the ones that she sent out earlier. They had found the Oto shinobi, all dead.

 _Good. Saves me the trouble._

Before she could order the moths to de-summon themselves, one of them threw up a red flag. Rei peered through its vision and saw the reason for its anxiety.

–Hatake Kakashi and his nin-ken.

 _Damn, he's coming here._ Rei de-summoned the rest of the moths leaving only the one near Hatake. She ordered it to follow the jounin and alert her when he got within the range of the Valley.

Rei's attention returned to the fight below as the blonde pinned Sasuke into the stone wall. She hoped that they would finish their fight before Hatake showed up. As entertaining as this battle was, she needed the Uchiha to come with her and not return with his sensei.

Rei could see the Uchiha's lips move in whisper before outright shouting. Whatever he told the Jinchuriki, it seemed to loosen his hold. Naruto backed away from the raven, his form slumped as if beaten.

Rei watched as they continued their fight. Lighting up a cigarette, she crouched low on the branch and observed the situation. Sasuke had stopped using the Cursed Seal's power and focused on his clan's kekkei genkai. He was more in control of himself now than before. Controlling the Cursed Seal of Heaven takes time, and spending a few days in a container doesn't make you a master in it. Right now, his Seal was a loose cannon.

Naruto hit the water with a grunt and lay motionless. Not even a second later, Rei shot up to her feet in alarm. The Bijuu's chakra was back in full force and before her eyes, Rei saw a tail form. She could feel her skin prickle and the hairs on the back of her arms stand up. The Oto swordsman had never confronted a Bijuu before. She met Gaara, but the boy had been relatively calm then, no sign of the Ichibi's influence.

 _Kami, sensei was right. It's like a black whole trying to suck you in._

The blonde's next attack resembled more of a wild animal's and Sasuke couldn't keep up with him. Even the Fire jutsu directed at the blonde didn't affect him as the Kyuubi's thick chakra kept him protected. Seeing the futility of attacking him in his current situation, Sasuke entered the first stage of the Seal, but didn't stop there. Rei witnessed Uchiha Sasuke's second stage and she had to say, it looked mild compared to hers or the Sound Five's. In this form, the Uchiha could hold himself against the Jinchuriki's one tail. She just hoped the fool wouldn't overuse it, lest he damage his organs.

Both faced each other in the shadows of the colossal statues. There seemed to be a finality about them.

The chirping of Chidori filled the air accompanied by the whirlwind of the Rasengan. Rei knew that this was it. This was their final attack. Both were too exhausted and damaged to continue fighting, so they were resorting to their most powerful attacks.

At the same time they moved, each charging towards the other. There was no hesitation in their eyes.

The boom resulting from the contact of the two deadly jutsus resounded across the valley. With strong hands, Rei took hold of the tree trunk as the shockwave traveled over her. It wasn't overtly bad. Most of the quake was concentrated down in the valley. From behind the protective lenses she could see the ever expanding ball of energy. It was as black as a void and Rei could feel the result of the clash of chakras. It was thick and slimy and _intense_. Once it reached a certain size, the ball cracked. Thin fissures appeared over the surface of the black marble, expanding until light trickled out. Rei turned her gaze away once the light became too powerful.

—All of this happened in the span of a few seconds.

Once the light dissipated, Rei's gaze was still temporarily distorted as multicolored spots plagued her vision. Rubbing her eyes, she came from behind cover and gazed upon the aftermath. The blast had been so powerful that it evaporated a large portion of the river below the statues. Even the waterfall had stopped pouring.

Rei could see the two genins below. A breath of relief escaped her lips as she saw the Uchiha boy still alive and up while the Jinchuriki was on the ground, unconscious.

Something dropped to the ground.

—Sasuke's headband.

The symbolism in it was clear.

The raven doubled over himself and vomited blood. With a hand over his stomach, he dropped to his knees, leaning over the blonde.

The Oto swordsman looked up when something wet and cold hit her cheek. Moments later, the sky darkened over and a downpour started, drenching the three occupants of the Valley to the bone.

It was almost poetic, as if the heavens were crying for the rupture of the bond between the two friends. No matter how much the Jinchiuriki wanted his friend back, he hadn't been able to save him. The blonde should just accept it, because from now on, his friend's days were numbered. This had been his last chance of saving the Uchiha, and he lost. In three years, the young heir will become just another husk for Orochimaru to burrow into, and that will be the end of Uchiha Sasuke.

Barely standing on his feet, the Uchiha boy rose and staggered towards the other side of the border into Rice Country.

The girl sighted. She watched as the Uchiha disappeared deep into her country's vegetation. Swiftly, she peeked through her moth's vision and saw that Hatake was just a few minutes away. With one last look at the pitiful crumpled form of the blonde, she turned on her heel and followed the raven.

* * *

Rei followed the dark haired boy in silence as he bled and clutched his stomach. The Uchiha walked at a slow and wobbly pace, barely finding the strength to stand on his own two feet.

The Oto swordsman watched him struggle from the shadows. She had no inclination of showing herself, much less help him. Soon, his legs gave out and his eyes rolled in the back of his head. He fell unceremoniously on the muddied ground.

Rei sighted in frustration. This was just great. Now, she had to drag his sorry ass all the way to the base.

The swordsman materialized from the darkness and walked over to him. Rei pushed her glasses over her forehead and settled them atop her head. She then rolled the boy's body over with her boot so he wouldn't drown in the puddle his face fell into. A swift kick was delivered to the Uchiha's ribs to see if he would wake up. With a pained groan, the boy's eyelids fluttered and Sasuke found himself staring into icy blue eyes.

"Had a nice nap, Uchiha?" Rei smirked mockingly, while looking at him down her nose.

"You…"

"Yes, me. Now get up because I'm not carrying your mud covered ass all the way back to base."

With difficulty, Sasuke managed to straighten his vision, and it struck him then that this was the first time he actually _looked_ at the Oto swordsman. He had been distracted by other matters to actually appraise the girl, but now, even with the rain, he could still see her clearly.

The first thing he noticed was that she was older than him—somewhere around 15-16 years old. She was also taller by at least a head. Her skin was of a russet color, one not produced by the sun's rays, but a natural tinge. Sasuke guessed that she must have originated from the West. The contrast between her skin and her snow white hair was shocking. Almost as if they were forced to coexist together. Her hair was fashioned with the left side shaved and the right left to grow until it reached her chin. At times her hair covered the right side of her face, making her fuss over it. She was pretty judging by the high cheekbones, full lips, crooked nose and sharp, slanted eyes the color of clear water. If he looked closer, Sasuke could see silver among the light blue of her irises.

While some may see the beauty in her exotic appearance, Sasuke just found her eerie, especially her eyes. Now, he understood why the girl opted to wear sunglasses even at night. They glowed like an animal's. He wouldn't be surprised if she could see in the dark.

Rei grabbed his arms and pulled him up easily. On his feet, he was now closer to the girl and he could see piercings shining in the dim light. An array of them were on her ears and only a hoop on her left nostril. There were dark circles underneath her eyes displaying an erratic sleeping schedule.

"What's your name?" That's right…She never did introduce herself.

"Rei. Nice to meet you, Uchiha." She finished derisively.

The girl turned away from him and walked in the direction of Sound. Sasuke slowly followed, but made it no further than three steps. His vision blurred then doubled and then finally blackened. Rei turned once she heard the wet thump as his body collided with the earth.

The Oto swordsman sighed. It seems she was going to have to carry him after all. Picking the boy up and grimacing at the feeling of mud sipping through her coat, she would have broken into a run if it weren't for the small flicker of chakra.

Pivoting around, the girl's narrowed eyes darted in every direction of the forest around her. She knew she felt something. It hadn't been her imagination. Extending her chakra field, she felt around the earth, the trees, even the vegetation, but there was nothing around her that suggested an interloper.

While still sensing nothing, Rei felt cautious enough to use her full speed. Without looking back, she took off with the Uchiha draped over her shoulder.

A few moments later, on one of the thicker tree branches, a head morphed out. The black and white Venus flytrap entity narrowed its golden eyes in the direction the Oto kunoichi disappeared.

" _Did she sense us_?" The white half curiously asked.

" _ **Unlikely.**_ " Its counterpart responded gravelly.

" _That girl…That's the kid that was always following Orochimaru around."_

" _ **Keh, who cares?**_ _"_ The black half spat indifferently. _"_ _ **The Kyuubi Jinchuriki…let's see if he's still alive.**_ _"_

The head receded back into the bark, blending in with its surroundings. There was nothing left to indicate that anyone had been there to begin with.

–A skill, Akatsuki's spy, was well versed in.

* * *

 **Foot Note:** So, Sasuke is done with Konoha and now comes the fun part.

 _Reviews and constructive criticisms are always welcome._


	4. Pact with the Devil

**Note:** Hello, guys. Long time since I updated, I know, but I did say that updating will be erratic. My TWD fanfic is my primary, this one is a secondary.

Enjoy!

* * *

 _ **Otokagure – Six months ago**_

" _How bad is it?"_

 _Rei was looking through the two-way mirror at the lying form of Kimimaro. The teen was connected to tubes and other machines as beeps and drips from IV's resounded throughout the white room._

 _The reflective surface of his glasses shone ominously as Kabuto fixed them on his nose. "I can't say for sure. I looked through the files we have on him and as of now I can't find a reason."_

 _Teeth flashed. "Tsk, some doctor you are."_

 _Kabuto glared. "I haven't found the cause because the files we have on his kekkei genkai are limited. Most of them were destroyed when his clan was exterminated."_

 _Crossing her arms over her chest, Rei turned her gaze back to the white room. "So it's connected to his kekkei genkai."_

 _The grey-haired doctor picked up a document and studied it intently. "Yes, his bones are gradually deteriorating, which in turn will cause his muscles to weaken and organs to cease functioning. It's similar to ostemyelitis."_

 _She fixed a deadpan look over him. "And that is?"_

" _It's a bone infection caused by bacteria traveling through his bloodstream."_

 _She took a step forward, her patience shortening. "So, if you know what it is, why don't you cure him?"_

" _I said, it's_ similar _, not ostemyelitis." Kabuto grinded his teeth in aggravation._

" _Shit." Rei cursed, but her irritation gradually fading as Kimimaro started coughing. "Is he going to die?"_

 _The doctor dropped the document on the working station. "If we can't find a way to treat it, then yes."_

" _I bet sensei wasn't too happy about that."_

 _Kabuto sighed. "No, he wasn't. He'll have to find a different host now."_

"… _How long does he have left?"_

" _Depends." Kabuto sat down at the desk over-watching the white room. "If he continues exerting himself, I would give him a year at best."_

 _Wide eyes appraised him. "That little?"_

 _He nodded as he began arranging his desk. "I will try to keep him alive as much as I can. Though sick, he still has some use."_

" _You better." Rei approached him and, without shame, started impudently pocking his temple. "Use that brain of yours and find a cure."_

 _Kabuto glowered as he swiped the offending appendage away. Kami, there were times when he hated the girl in front of him with a passion. This was one of those times._

 _Rei left the darkened room and entered the white one._

 _Except for the machines and Kimimaro's ragged breathing, there was no other noise present. Mindful of the pair of eyes watching from behind the two-way mirror, Rei sat on the swivel stool next to the medical bed, carefully schooling her features._

 _Kimimaro's vivid green eyes watched her movements from the second she entered._

" _You know then?" His ragged voice disturbed the white silence._

" _I just found out." Rei took off her sunglasses and frowned deeply. "What the hell were you thinking keeping this to yourself?"_

 _The pale boy sighed as his eyes flickered to the beeping monitors. "I did not think it was this serious. I've had pains since I was a child. I thought it was from growing, not some ailment."_

" _Well, it's not." She crossed her arms over her chest conceitedly. "What did Kabuto tell you?_

" _That I will die." He said flatly with little emotion._

" _Heh, figures he'd say that." Rei shook her head, aware of Kabuto's sadism and the twisted pleasure he probably took from delivering the news. "Sensei will find a way."_

— _Orochimaru_ always _found a way._

" _I hope so…" Kimimaro sighed as he eyed the monitors. The drip-drip-drip of the IV was starting to make him claustrophobic._

 _His breathing deepened. Closing his eyes, Rei was unable to see the melancholic resignation in his now dull greens. "This is not how I imagined I will die."_

" _Nothing is final yet."_

 _A small apathetic smile crossed his lips. "You are oddly caring today."_

 _Rei snorted sardonically. "You're the only other person besides Orochimaru that I can talk to without getting the need to rearrange their face. And if you die, I'll be left here with_ him _." She nodded her head towards the two-way mirror. "You are one of the strongest shinobi we have. Of course I'm worried. We'd lose a valuable asset if you died."_

" _An asset…" He averted his eyes as silence swept over the inhabitants of the room. That word, while he was used to it, still managed to offend him on some level. Kimimaro stared desponded at the pristine white walls of the medical ward._

" _Orochimaru-sama isn't going to use me as his vessel anymore, is he?" His voice was lifeless, already knowing the answer. But he needed to hear it out loud—for it to be official._

" _No." Rei never was one to pull punches. "Isn't that a good thing?"_

 _He shook his head. "You don't understand."_

" _Try me."_

" _All I ever wanted was to prove my existence." Pale fists clenched underneath the white sheet. "My clan thought of me as nothing more than a dangerous animal. They kept me in a cage like a dog." Painful memories came flooding back like tidal waves. The shame and anger he felt years ago becoming all too real again. His anger dissipated when he thought of that fateful day among the fire and death. "But then, Orochimaru-sama took me in after my clan was destroyed." The first real smile brightened his deathly pallor. "_ He _saw_ me _. He saw my potential. I existed in someone's eyes." As swiftly as the smile appeared it melted away to the barren wasteland that became his soul. "And now I have lost that. I am again just an animal howling at the moon."_

 _Kimimaro's words left Rei unable to offer anything, not even an advice._

" _I…don't know what to say."_

 _Because it was true. Kimimaro's value to Orochimaru was as a powerful vessel, but with his sickness killing him, he was more of a hindrance now. The Snake Sannin had no use for faulty soldiers, and as such, turned his gaze away._

" _It's best if you don't." Kimimaro closed his eyes. "I wish to be alone, senpai. I am tired."_

 _Rei nodded and left the sick room._

 _The further she walked, the lonelier it became. Soon, Kimimaro will be maggot food and she will be alone here with only Orochimaru and Kabuto to keep her company._

 _She grimaced._ Not much company they were…

 _Poor Kimimaro. Life dealt him a crappy card. And just when things started to get better, he was beaten back down again, and this time for good. There was no turning back from this; even Rei knew this deep inside. There was nothing Orochimaru could do—it was too late._

 _Oh, how she wished the echoes of her steps didn't make everything seem so bleak…_

* * *

"Is he dead?"

Kabuto frowned as he watched the white-haired swordsman enter the base with the younger Uchiha over her shoulder.

"Nah, just unconscious."

And with that, Rei promptly dropped her 'luggage' on the cold concrete. The knocked out boy groaned painfully as he shifted to the side.

Rei could practically feel Kabuto's disapproval radiating off him. She wouldn't be surprised if smoke erupted out of his nostrils like an angry bull.

"He fought the Kyuubi brat." Rei lightly kicked the boy's side eliciting a hiss of discomfort. At Kabuto's surprise, the swordsman explained. "They had a standoff at the Valley of the End. But the Uchiha didn't have it in him to finish him off. How's sensei?"

"Angry, but well. He is recovering from the effects of the jutsu." Kabuto crouched low and checked the Uchiha's pulse. It was small but steady. "I will take Sasuke from here. Orochimaru-sama wants to speak with you."

Rei nodded, and without a look back strolled towards the Sannin's chambers.

Once she finished speaking with sensei, the first thing she was going to do was take a long hot bath. Because frankly, she stank.

Reaching the large, thick double doors of Orochimaru's chambers, Rei knocked courteously. Hearing the man's permission she entered and sat on the wooden chair next to his bed. The Snake Sannin looked awful. He was so pale that the veins underneath his skin were visible. There were shadows underneath his eyes and splotches of blood in his sclera. His breathing was labored and there was sweat pouring down his temple.

Picking up one of the rags on the nightstand, Rei attempted to wipe his forehead only for it to be snatched from her fingers and thrown to the other side of the room.

Rei scoffed. _Someone's having a tantrum…_

"The boy?" Orochimaru hissed, craving good news.

"Alive and well…mostly." The Sannin's glare was vicious, but Rei just waved it off. "Just a few scratches and bruises."

An enthusiastic smile suddenly broke her cynical mood. "I have something that will cheer you up. The Uchiha advanced into the second stage of the Cursed Seal."

That removed Orochimaru's perpetual frown and peeked his interest instead.

A small smirk quirked his lips. "Good."

The promises in that one sentence lifted his spirits.

Rei relaxed in her seat, with one of her ankles crossed over her knee. "He even beat the Jinchuriki brat after he released one tail."

"Show me."

The order was clear and crisp and Rei did not hesitate. Her callous fingers produced a small forest green moth which landed on the Sannin's fingers. Rei leaned back in her chair as the insect began repeating all the events of today in fast forward.

Once it was over, the moth disappeared with a puff of smoke returning to wherever they are summoned from.

"The boy is stronger than I thought." Orochimaru mused as he replayed the memory in his mind. A wave of bitterness swept over him, darkening his features. "If only…"

Rei sighed. This situation weighted more heavily on the Sannin than she thought. He had put too much faith in it. "It's only three years, sensei. They'll fly by."

"I have waited too long for this opportunity." His fists clenched. "I have no patience for another few years!"

"Think of the benefits. He'll be stronger and he won't look like a child anymore."

"Keh." Orochimaru rebuked her with a wave of his hand and rested down on his pillows. They sat in silence for a few minutes, Rei careful of further infuriating the man and Orochimaru attempting to control his rampant emotions.

"I take it the others are dead."

Rei nodded as she took off her glasses. "Yeah, Kimimaro was defeated by the Ichibi Jinchuriki."

Vertical pupils thinned as they focused on her. "Gaara? What business did he have in Fire?"

The swordsman shrugged. "The others died in a similar fashion. Gaara came with his siblings. It seems Suna is trying to get in Konoha's good graces after their participation in the coup." A spiteful leer graced her lips. "Like dogs licking the boots of their masters."

Orochimaru sighed as he ran a palm over his tired features. "After all those years of training, five of my best shinobi were beaten by barely aged teenagers. No wonder we lost…"

Rei grimaced. The memory of the (her) shameful defeat at Konoha brought back a vile taste in her mouth. She knew that Orochimaru partially blamed her—he said so himself after Kabuto had tried restoring his arms. Anger and humiliation distorted mind and words, but she knew that a part of him meant them. She had been the one coordinating the attack after all.

He will never forget that day and neither will Rei, but she made it her goal to make up for it. And Sasuke had been that goal, only for it to fail spectacularly.

* * *

Rei walked the darkened halls of the Oto base.

 _Where was the medical ward again?_

She never stepped foot in the southern medical base before, so she only had a vague idea where it was. A few wrong turns and dead-end hallways later ( _whoever designed this maze-like base should die!_ ) she finally stepped past its threshold and ended in the brightest room in the base.

 _Dammit!_

Rei immediately placed her sunglasses back over her eyes and waited a few seconds for her vision to lose the multicolored spots. _Goddamn Kabuto and his crap sight!_

She couldn't smell or hear him anywhere near the vicinity so he must be attending some other business…thankfully. Passing the rows of beeping machines and wheezing pumps, Rei reached the observational room of the sickbed ward. It was a small, clustered room with a few desks filled with documents and ink splotches. One of the desks was the exception as it was filled with machines and monitors. There were two medics: one with his eyes glued to the monitors and the other checking files on the patients. They immediately tensed when they saw Rei.

—The fear emanating from them was alluring.

"Get out."

"But, we need to monitor—"

The 'you-will-die-very-soon-if-you-don't-listen-to-me' stare she gave them spurred them to leave. Looking through the observation window she saw Kabuto's best medic checking out the vitals of each patient. She was in her late 40's with strands of grey hair in her dark hair and sharp brown eyes behind thick framed glasses. There weren't many patients lying in beds, only three—and one of them was the Uchiha brat.

Stepping into the room, the woman briefly paused at seeing her before resuming her duties. Rei reached the Uchiha's bed and checked his chart: cracked ribs, internal bleeding, concussion, weakened muscles, some fractures in his bones. Her sharp gaze perused over his sleeping form wrapped in bandages and casts. Looking over his status, it was a miracle he didn't die on the way here. It was probably the Cursed Seal that kept him alive.

 _Whatever._

"You should take a break." Rei said with her eyes still on the Uchiha.

The doctor continued to scribble away on her chart without a pause. "These patients are my charges. I can't leave."

Rei turned around with narrowed eyes. "I wasn't giving you an option."

The woman paused in the scratch-scratch on paper and eyed her apathetically. "Kabuto-sama will not be happy."

"And that doesn't interest me." Rei took a silent step towards her. Her pupils dilated with the anger that started to bubble in her stomach. "Either get out or _I'm_ gonna throw you out. And I don't give a shit how old you are."

The woman's expression didn't change, but she did put down her chart after a few moments. Without another word between them, the woman left with her head held high.

Rei silently dragged a swivel stool to Sasuke's bed. Sitting on it, she observed the young teen with the vicious eyes of a predator.

"Oh, Uchiha…You're gonna _love_ it here."

Rei pulled one of her gloves off and extended her naked fingers to gently caress his cheek. To the unknowing eye, her action could be described as a tender one, but if you looked closely you could see Rei dragging her sharp nails over his skin. There were slim trails of inflamed skin left behind.

"Because of you, I further lost Orochimaru's trust."

Her nails dug in and the smile disappeared off her face, leaving a ghastly expression. Her mask was slipping off as the white of her eyes could be seen.

"And every time I look at you I have to see my failure."

Sharp teeth flashed, and white sclera turned to black with blue irises bleeding to gold.

Spidery fingers harshly pinched Sasuke's nose as well as covered his mouth. It didn't take long for his body to recognize the dangers it was in and struggle. The heart monitor he was connected to spiked alarmingly, beeping incessantly. When the wild thrashing of his body shrunk to a minimum was when Rei's consciousness broke through the red haze that took over her mind.

—She retracted her hand and let the lungs breathe.

Breathing harshly, Rei firmly gripped the edge of the bed, lest her traitorous hands wandered again. It took a while for her heart to calm down and her fury to dissipate.

Pale icy eyes slid back towards the heaving boy. She almost let her anger get the better of her. Orochimaru wouldn't have forgiven her if she had gone through with it.

Rising to her feet, Rei briskly left the room, cautious of her unbridled temper.

 _Damn the boy to the lowest corner of Yomi! Why did Orochimaru have to pick him out of all the ninja in the world?_ _While powerful, there were greater or just as strong kekkei genkai as the Sharingan._

Was it an insult? A reminder of what she did all those years ago?

—Was this punishment?

Rei spat as she stormed through the halls, unconsciously leaking livid chakra. The shinobi scattered throughout the base felt the disturbance and knew better than to cross paths with Rei when she was in one of her moods.

She didn't go to her room that night, instead left the base. Rei needed peace and quiet…something to calm her nerves.

She ran through the forest, jumping from branch to branch. The gentle breeze cooled her warmed body and cleared her mind. Running was one of the few pleasures she indulged in—where she could be alone, away from the troubles of the base and its inhabitants.

Away from herself—of being judge, jury and executioner.

Ever since taking on the role of Commander of the Otogakure forces, she had become swamped with tasks and problems and schedules. While Rei took care of the mission and battle aspects of the village, Kabuto took the medical and scientific departments.

Sometimes, she despised it with a passion, this role of hers. She had no time for herself anymore and barely any freedom. Rei always had to be with one eye on the goings of the shinobi and the other on Orochimaru.

—It was exhausting.

She had thinned over these past few months and she swore her hair would turn grey like an old hag's. By the time she reached twenty she would look eighty.

Rei stopped in her sprint and sat down on a thick branch. She let herself blend with the forest around her as she listened to the rustle of leaves. Every now and then a leaf fell as autumn was almost at their doorstep and Rei greedily took advantage of summer's last breaths.

Would it be so wrong if she renounced her position? If she asked Orochimaru to give it to someone else? Someone more experienced and with a better grip on their emotions.

But knowing her sensei, he would just laugh, kick her in the face and then send her back to her duties. And she wouldn't blame him.

She closed her eyes wearily. There was no escaping what she got herself into. She had readily accepted his offer two years ago, but it felt like a decade had passed. She hadn't known at the time how much of a responsibility it was, she had just wanted it for the title and power that came with it.

…That, and to rub it in Kabuto's face and all the others that she hated.

And now came the Uchiha.

Orochimaru will focus his full attention on the boy, leaving her to deal with everything else. Another set of baggage on her shoulders.

Rei sighed. _The price we must pay for the service of our masters_.

The swordsman mused that she would have been much happier if she had remained Orochimaru's soldier. His attack dog, and not a leader of men.

Ah, but such thoughts were traitorous. They lead down a path of regrets and Rei did not have time for such trivialities. She was evolving, one day at a time. And if her path to the top of the food chain led through Sound's ranks, she'll adapt and overcome.

Rei was many things, but never a loser.

* * *

A groan.

Sasuke flinched as a bright light infiltrated his sight. His eyes had become disused to the light and now it irritated the surface. He tried to move his limbs only for them to be stiff and uncooperative. Pain shot throughout his body and he renounced trying to move.

What happened? Was he in the hospital? He could smell antiseptics and sickness, central odors found in hospices. Kami, how he hated them. It always brought on memories of when he woke up in a hospital bed after that fateful night.

As he looked around, he vaguely remembered a fight down by a waterfall. A fight with—

"Uchiha-san." A clinical voice broke his train of thought. "Can you hear me?"

Even with his vision blurry as hell, he still tried to focus on the speaker. It took a few harsh blinks and mental willpower for his vision to straighten, and there before him, stood an older woman with a pocket flashlight in hand. And, to his surprise, behind her was a familiar snow-white haired, indoor sunglass wearing girl.

"Rise and shine, brat."

 _What was her name again?_

He couldn't for the life of him remember, so he just let it go. He'll hear it sooner or lat—

 _Wait._

If she was here, didn't that mean…

"I'm in Sound."

"Yes." The medic moved the flashlight from right to left over his eyes. His pupils were reacting accordingly. "Now, please answer my questions. Do you know your first name?"

"Sasuke." The boy answered in confusion.

"Your birth da—"

"He knows all that shit!" The sudden explosion of impatience had him jump in surprise but didn't even make the medic flinch. "Quit stalling and leave us be."

The senior just gave the junior female a deadpan look. "It is procedure, Commander."

"Well, _proceed_ after I talk to him."

A small sigh left the woman, but she complied and left to check the other patients. The swordsman's took off her glasses as her gaze followed the medic with the narrowed eyes of a cat, before turning those arctic orbs on him.

"You dirtied my coat."

Sasuke blinked like an owl. _What?_

"I had to carry you all the way here after you passed out. You know how hard it is to get mud and earth out of fiber, not to mention blood." She snorted disdainfully. "Bet you don't."

The Uchiha still didn't understand.

"Don't you remember?" The ignorant look on his face was making her blood boil.

Small fractions flashed before his eyes: he fought Naruto at the Valley of the End and won, but that was about it.

"I remember fighting Naruto and then nothing." That's right…Naruto was the one he tried to kill and would have succeeded had the blonde not avoided his Chidori hitting anything vital.

"The concussion clouded your mind most likely."

"How long was I out?" He gently raised his arm and rubbed his tired features. His eyes were beginning to hurt from the brightness of the room.

"Three days. _She_ can give you a detailed report on you injuries." The girl indicated the medic in the room.

That long? His injuries must have been extensive. Putting all his strength into his arms, he lifted his upper body to lean against the headboard. It had been painful, but he just gritted his teeth and marched through it. Now that he had a vantage point he could see the extensive bandages wrapped around his hands and arms. He tried extending his chakra through his arms only for a stinging sensation to burn him.

"I wouldn't do that so soon after your fight." The girl snorted in amusement. The way the pain contorted his face was funny. "Doc says your chakra pathways are pretty messed up. You're just gonna damage them further."

The Uchiha ignored her in favor of his body. There were other bandages wrapped around his ribs and his left foot. The sterile linen wrapped around his head was slightly uncomfortable but he knew better than to take it off. His mind then wandered to the one that inflicted these wounds.

"Is…Naruto still alive?"

The girl shrugged, not at all interested in the fate of the Jinchuriki. "You shouldn't worry about him anymore. Whatever thoughts of Konoha you have, put them out of your mind. This is your new home."

Sasuke gave her a flat look. "This is not _home_."

A dumpster would feel more like home than this dark, dank snake-hole. Not five minutes was he awake that already he could feel the oppressiveness of Otogakure.

"Well, don't get too comfy. We'll be moving out once you get on your feet."

"Where are we going?"

"Orochimaru's main base. This is just the southern one." The girl smirked sharply. "You'll learn that our village is a bit different from what you're used to."

The girl straightened her black coat and made a sharp gesture towards the woman on the other side of the room. The medic joined them and was about to resume the check up that the girl so rudely interrupted, but was again delayed.

"Straighten him up, he has a meeting with Orochimaru."

The perpetual straight-faced medic blinked slowly. "He's not ready to walk around, let alone strain himself."

"Orochimaru's orders." The swordsman grinned maliciously. "Or do you want me to tell him that he had to wait because of you?"

"I'm sure that Orochimaru-sama understands the value of a healthy body."

"He also understands that his subordinates better listen to his goddamn orders, even if you have one foot in the grave."

The cold brown eyes observed her hawkishly, but it didn't take long for the woman to decide. "…He'll be ready in 30 minutes."

"Finally. I'll be waiting outside."

Sasuke watched the girl briskly walk out of the ward. He let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding. Even the air in the room seemed much lighter with her departure.

"Is she always like that?"

The medic merely gave him a dull look, before going back to checking his bandages.

* * *

Exactly 30 minutes later, Sasuke stepped out of the observational room. He was tired and fatigued, and looked ready to collapse at any second. The swordsman didn't seem to care much as she promptly signaled him to follow her.

He walked a steady slow pace, and the impatience emanating off the girl in front of him was palpable. She seemed to disagree with his snail speed.

—Like he cared.

The corridors were gloomy, and not even the lanterns hanging on the walls could stave off the darkness. The oppressive feeling was back and it just got more pressing as they approached their destination. He could practically feel Orochimaru's dominion flowing through the earth and stone, dominating all aspects of the base.

The girl peeked over her shoulder at his progress and he saw it again—the way her eyes were glowing. He'd seen that shine only on cats at night and wondered if it was natural.

—It put him on edge to be honest.

He saw several shinobi every now and then, and they all scattered out of their way. Or to be specific, out of the swordsman's way. Sasuke noticed the way they bowed their head in greeting and respect and the Uchiha heir could not understand why. The girl in front of him didn't look like she could generate any form of respect.

Sasuke grimaced as he could feel the effects of his walk. His body was beginning to throb in pain and now he understood why that medic had been against him leaving. The boy just hoped that this meeting with the Sannin will end sooner rather than later.

Turning a corner, they ended up in front of black, heavy double-doors. Before pushing one of the doors open, she looked him up from head to toe. Giving an unsatisfied grunt, she entered the spacious room.

The room was circular in shape and barren except for the large throne like chair in the center. And on it, was the Snake Sannin himself with Kabuto on his right. The girl walked up to them and settled on Orochimaru's left, leaving Sasuke in front of them as if on trial.

It also didn't help that the light was dimmed enough to create dancing shadows on the walls.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun, welcome."

Nothing in this room was welcoming. From Orochimaru and the girl's predatory eyes to the reflective shine of the grey-haired medic's glasses.

"I trust my medical staff has treated you well."

Sasuke nodded. "They did their job."

"Good." Orochimaru leaned in his 'throne' with a smile on his face. "I am most delighted that you accepted my offer. You will find the best accommodations here—"

"Cut the crap. Why did you bring me here?"

The girl's glowing eyes narrowed into slits as she took a threatening step forward, her fingers poised into claws. "Watch your tongue, Uchiha, or I will—"

Orochimaru effectively shut down the girl's tirade with a glare. He turned back to Sasuke with a small grin on his face. "You think I have an alternative reason for bringing you here? You are right, I do. And it has nothing to do with what Rei embellished."

 _Rei._ Sasuke looked at the white-haired girl again, before focusing his attention back on the reason he was here.

Both Rei and Kabuto glanced worriedly at their master. What the hell was he doing? This wasn't what they had planned.

Orochimaru rose from to his feet and slowly approached the Uchiha boy.

Sasuke felt the undeniable 'fight-or-flight' as the Sannin stopped just one foot away from him.

"Let me explain. I have been searching for a way to be immortal for a long time." A whimsical smolder melted the gold in his irises. "Ever since I was a child I was fascinated with the subject, and as I grew older it became more and more important." His expression then turned to one of displeasure. "The limited number of years a human being lives is laughable, and not enough to learn all the jutsus that are out there in the world. Every day new techniques are invented and transformed, and it burns me to know that these jutsus may never reach me because by that time I have died of old age." A manic aura overwhelmed him. "I _live_ for knowledge, and with knowledge comes power. I _want_ power."

The aura retracted to a more mild form as he started circling the boy.

"Once I cut off the bonds holding me back in Konoha, I found the way. Granted, it's not the best and it's temporary until I find a permanent solution." He stopped right behind him and leaned closer to his ear, making Sasuke's skin crawl. "Do you know what that technique is?"

"Orochimaru-sama—"

"Soul transfer." The Sannin answered, not even hearing Kabuto's pleas.

Sasuke's dark eyes looked on in confusion. _What?_

"I haven't inhibited my original body for over ten years." He stretched his fingers in show before closing them in a fist. "I move from one host to another. One more powerful than the last."

It dawned on him then, and Sasuke immediately moved away from his imposing shadow. The instinct to fight raged on in him as he evaluated his situation. He was currently trapped in a room with three very dangerous shinobi and if it came to it, he wouldn't be able to fight them off in his weakened state.

"Do not be afraid, Sasuke-kun. I have no intention of harming you." The Sannin's sharp smile said anything but. "If I wanted to take over your body, I would have done it while you were unconscious."

That didn't put the boy at ease.

"But, that is not to say that I won't take over at some point. As of now, I have already transferred to a new host. I won't be needing to move for another few years."

The urge to flee was even greater. This Sannin was a _monster_.

"So…I'm just another body for you to bury into? This is why you went through all the trouble to bring me here?" Sasuke tried to understand. Why was _he_ so special?

"I want your body because of your Sharingan." Hunger practically poured out of him at the mention of his bloodline. "I have wanted to posses that kekkei genkai for years now and you are the most… _accessible_ way of getting it."

"Now, _this_ is my real offer. Give me your body and in return, I will help you kill your brother."

 _Ah…So this is the reason…_

Sasuke's nerves stilled like a guitar string. He felt no reason to feel fear at the moment. Orochimaru was right, if he had wanted to hurt him, he would have done it already.

The arrogance came back with a vengeance.

Pacing around the room, arms crossed at the chest with a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. The other occupants of the room eyed him like prey as they followed his every move.

"So, you want my body to continue extending your… _disgusting_ , _depraved_ life."

The small circular glows narrowed to half-moons.

"And in return, _theoretically_ , you will help me take down my brother."

Sasuke stopped and faced them, that awful smirk seemingly growing bigger.

" _Bullshit_."

A thin vein throbbed in Orochimaru's temple. "It is true. I have no reason to lie."

The boy scoffed. _That might be the biggest bullshit ever._

"I did, at first, wanted to feed you a story, but I changed my mind at the last minute. Something, I'm sure, my subordinates are not too happy about." Motioning towards the two behind him. "I thought that it would be for the best to be straightforward with you from the beginning. This way there are no barriers between us, and I encourage you to do the same. I have no time for this so called 'bullshit'."

Orochimaru turned and sat back on his 'throne', cradling his chin in his palm. That disturbing smile was back in place.

"You can spit and argue all you want, but the matter of fact is, _you_ came to _me_. I don't see you running away even after knowing my reason."

"You're right…I'm not going to run. Want to know why? Because I don't care what your reasons are. If you help me get strong enough to kill my brother, you can do whatever you want with this body. It won't be of much use to me after. My only purpose is avenging my clan, nothing else matters to me."

Sasuke took a deep breath. There was no going back now.

"So, you keep your end of the deal, and I will keep mine."

The smile widened and the Sannin clasped his hands together, the sharp sound bouncing off the walls. "A toast then, to a mutual beneficial partnership."

"Hear, hear." Rei mocked.

Sasuke felt a wave of chakra from Orochimaru rush over him, and not a minute later an Oto shinobi entered the room.

"Take Sasuke-kun back to the medical ward, _intact_."

The ninja bowed and motioned the boy to follow. The man didn't even hide the sneer as he eyed him up and down.

Exiting the oppressing room, Sasuke vowed that soon, these people will be viewing him with the same fear and dread as the Sannin. They will avoid looking at him directly lest they lose their sight. They will shudder and quake at the mere sight of him.

Even Orochimaru's two dogs.

He will make sure of that.

And once that happens, he will destroy both the dogs and the master. Sasuke had no intention of giving up his body to this sadist. He wasn't that foolish. He will simply use the Sannin until there was nothing he could siphon from him anymore, knowledge wise or skills.

And then, Sasuke will leave this base burning with the three of them bleeding underneath rubble and concrete.

It's the least he could do to better the world.

* * *

Rei watched as the Uchiha boy disappeared behind the door. His steps got quieter and quieter and soon disappeared in the bowls of the concrete bunker.

"He won't do it." She whipped around to the man on the throne. "He won't give up his body even after he—"

"Don't be ridiculous, Rei. Of course he won't." The Sannin lost all humor as he contemplated the future. "I have little faith that that boy will overcome his brother. They may be of the same blood, but Itachi was a prodigy, and that set him far above the majority of shinobi. The boy lacks his calculated viciousness and lack of morality, and such, will never transcend his own limitations."

"I see…" Kabuto adjusted his glasses. "You have no intention of letting him even try to fight Itachi."

The Sannin scoffed at the ludicrous idea. "Of course not. I have no use for a corpse."

"And how are you going to keep him from trying to escape once _he_ thinks he's ready?" If she was in his place, she wouldn't wait. The moment she thought she was strong enough, she would high-tail it out of here, pledge or not.

"I trust, Rei, that you are capable enough to handle an arrogant, spoiled brat."

Rei grinned maliciously.

Orochimaru rose from his throne and headed towards one of the doors, his two underlings right behind him. "Kabuto, how much longer are you keeping him under observation?"

"A week at best, and then he can be discharged. But it will take another week until he can start training."

The Sannin sighed as bad news after bad news seemed to ruin his mood. "The moment he gets to his feet, we leave for the main base. I will have no further delays."

Neither of the fair haired fighters needed to assure the Sannin of their obedience.


	5. Welcome to Sound

_**Konohagakure – One week before the**_ _ **Chūnin**_ _ **Exam**_

" _That's him?"_

" _Yes."_

 _Rei was left bewildered as she saw Uchiha Sasuke for the first time. He was a_ boy _. Barely past twelve and probably hadn't even grown one single facial hair._

 _Blue eyes followed the boy's path as he walked beside two other children and Hatake Kakashi. The streets of Konoha were crowded as its inhabitants were ready to check in for the day. The sun was minutes away from basking the village in darkness and Rei and Orochimaru watched the four from their vantage point, hidden in the shadowed part of a building terrace._

 _The swordsman snorted as the Jinchuriki overreacted to something the Uchiha said. He would have attacked him if it hadn't been for his sensei holding him back by his jacket collar. The pink haired girl hit the blonde over the head in annoyance as the raven simply taunted the blonde._

How cute _, the girl grimaced._

" _He's a kid." Rei skeptically eyed Orochimaru who was leaning against the railing with his back to the view. "Didn't know you were into_ that _, sensei."_

 _The Sannin narrowed his eyes lazily. "One of these days I am going to cut out that witty tongue of yours, Rei."_

" _But then you'd be bored." The cheeky grin vanished as she turned her attention back to the genin group. "He doesn't look like much."_

" _He has potential and, more importantly, his Sharingan."_

 _Rei sighed. "I'll never understand your obsession over it. There are other clans with stronger kekkei genkais than the Uchiha's."_

" _Are you offering, Rei?" The Snake smiled wickedly._

" _Never said that."_

 _The teasing humor disappeared as Orochimaru watched the Uchiha heir with greed. "Sasuke is the only way I can ever attain the Sharingan. His age is merely a small hindrance."_

" _Last time you tried it didn't end so well." Rei harshly bit the inside of her cheek the moment she let that slip._

 _The lightning fast glare the Sannin graced her with had her take a step back in warning. Orochimaru was known to strike unpredictably at any moment, hence his favored animal._

" _Watch it, Rei. I still haven't forgotten what_ you _did."_

 _His voice could have cracked stone and his pupils thinned so considerably that they were merely two black strips in a sea of gold. His fingers dug in the cloth on his arms as he held them crossed, a sign that he was holding in the urge to produce bodily harm to her for that reckless comment._

 _Rei raised her hands in a placating gesture and lowered her head in respect. She had unthinkingly pushed one of his buttons and it would be in her best interest to go belly up, lest her sensei acted upon those violent urges._

 _The swordsman waited until Orochimaru came down from his homicidal state to continue their conversation. If she deviated his attention long enough maybe he will forget her slip up._

" _When do you want to capture him? Before or after the Konoha Crush?"_

 _The Sannin's gaze remained the same, sharp and harsh, but despite his annoyance he did respond. "I will approach him in the_ _Chūnin_ _Exam, preferably during the second phase. The forest will provide enough cover and we will be undisturbed by other Konoha ninja."_

 _Rei frowned, not liking his train of thought. "It's risky exposing yourself like that, sensei. Konoha will know you're in the village and they'll tighten up their defenses, or worse, they'll send out shinobi looking for you."_

" _They don't have anyone strong enough to defeat me." Orochimaru smirked conceitedly._

" _What if this fucks up our plan?"_

 _A thin brow rose. "I trust you can adapt yourself to this minor change, Rei."_

 _Rei let her head hang in aggravation. Sometimes her sensei pissed her off. Whenever she deviated from the plan she got hell for it, but if he did it then everyone was expected to just go along with it like it was natural._

The perks of being at the top of the food chain…

" _Can I ask why the bold move?"_

" _I intend to brand Sasuke with the Cursed Seal during the Exam."_

 _Her eyes widened._ So soon? _"…Is that wise?"_

" _Are you questioning me, Rei?" The glare returned._

" _Only when I think it's necessary." Rei approached as she let her hip lean against the railing. "If you brand him with the Seal now, the Third will realize what you're trying to do and won't let you take him. Hell, they'll tighten their grip on the boy."_

" _That's why I will kill Sarutobi." Orochimaru said with utter calm. "With him out of the way, Konoha is ours. There will be no one that could stop me."_

" _What about the Toad Sannin? Kabuto's spies said that he's near Konoha. If he comes here—"_

 _A scoff. "Even if he does, Jiraiya will not interfere. I will leave you to take care of that."_

Right, because I'm strong enough to take on the bloody Toad Sannin _, Rei thought sardonically. She was nowhere near even beating Orochimaru, how the hell did he think she could subdue Jiraiya?_

" _You want me to kill him?"_ Please say no. I don't want to die in the process.

" _I doubt you can." Orochimaru's snort spiked the girl's anger. "As long as you keep him out of the way, I don't care what you do."_

" _Sensei…" Rei took her sunglasses off to massage the bridge of her nose. "You're risking a lot here. Even one small change could affect everything in the long run. Butterfly effect and all that shit."_

 _Orochimaru paused, taken aback. "I'm surprised you even heard about that."_

 _Rei's face fell. "I read too, you know. I'm not an idiot." She placed her sunglasses back on as the glare of the dying sun was irritating her irises. "I'm just saying, I know that the Cursed Seal eases the transition between bodies but branding him before we capture Konoha could have some serious repercussions. Why so soon?"_

" _Insurance." Orochimaru stared back over the village with a solemn expression. Kami, how he_ loathed _this place. The mere sight of it made his skin crawl with unwanted memories. "If we don't succeed in capturing Konoha, I want to be sure Sasuke will come to me."_

" _I don't think he's that stupid, sensei." The girl deadpanned._

" _The Cursed Seal won't give him a choice." A devious grin split his lips as his eyes settled back on the clan heir._

I see _, Rei sighed. Whatever the outcome will be, Orochimaru was making sure that boy will join his side out of need if not out of want. And her sensei was always right. The boy will come, sooner or later, by his choice or not._

 _Rei felt her breath lengthen as she watched the small group break. Hatake waved his genin goodbye as he Shunshin-ed away, the Jinchuriki headed off in one direction and Sasuke in the other with the pinkett trailing after him like a second shadow._

 _The Oto swordsman gripped the railing tighter as her blood simmered. She felt like hunting and her prey was right in sight._

" _I'm gonna take a closer look."_

" _Be quick about it. We need to return to the others." No doubt his 'genin' team was beginning to get anxious from his prolonged absence._

 _Rei jumped over the railing and landed on the building below. Jumping roof to roof, she ended just above the boy and the pinkett. Slowing her pace, she watched as the raven finally got fed up with the girl's incessant puppy affection and waved her off without sympathy._

 _The girl remained behind as her shoulders sagged in defeat, her melancholic jade eyes glued to his distancing back._

Ah, unrequited love. _Rei sneered disdainfully._ That must hurt.

 _Rei followed the raven and jumped down into an alleyway somewhere ahead of him. Using a Henge no Jutsu, she transformed into a plain looking civilian. One that didn't stand out in a crowd._

 _Exiting the alley, she walked towards him. The Uchiha heir didn't even glance in her direction as if she were nothing more than part of the scenery and, as such, was ignorable._

 _With each step taken, Rei got a better look at his face—He looked so much like his brother. They both had inherited those Uchiha genes that made them deadly good-looking. From the photos of his family, he took more after his mother than his father. His skin looked softer and paler than his brother's, though. His charcoal eyes weren't slanted, merely narrowed in aggravation, and his hair was spiky. A sudden stray thought almost made her laugh out loud as she compared his hair with the backend of a duck._

 _They were within touching range, and only now did Sasuke spare her a glance._

 _A shiver passed down her spine as those dark eyes stared at her and, ultimately, through her._

— _He overlooked her._

 _Rei could feel the excitement make her heart beat faster in anticipation. The excitement of something new headed her way, and the unpredictability of it._

 _She hadn't felt like this since—_

 _They passed one another and with swift reflexes, Rei grazed her fingers lightly across his cheek. Sasuke jumped in surprise as he hadn't expected the sudden caress. He stopped in his tracks and turned towards the strange girl with wide, stunned eyes. He's had many girls pursue him, but none have been so bold as to outright touch him._

 _For a moment, Sasuke felt a surge of adrenaline course trough his veins as the instinct of fight-or-flight reared itself as the girl paused. The way she watched him with those eager eyes and that large, eerie smile had the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Looking at her now, she wasn't so unnoticeable as before. In fact, she looked like a completely different person._

" _You're pretty."_

 _Sasuke froze. He had no idea how to respond. If it were anyone else he would have rebuked them without a second thought, but this girl…_

 _She_ freaked _him out._

" _What a waste."_

 _And with that she turned away and continued down the road, leaving him even more confused than before._

 _Rei smirked at the dumbfounded expression he had worn. She had wanted to fuck with his head, to see his reaction, but there was some truth to her words._

— _It was too bad someone as striking as him was going to die so hideously._

* * *

"Hmmm…" A click and the pocket flashlight flickered out. "Your vital stats are good. Your skin healed perfectly and the muscles have grown and reattached themselves as intended."

Kabuto backed away from the Uchiha boy with a satisfied look on him. He had been the one to heal the boy after all.

"I'm good then?" Sasuke asked impatiently. He was ready to leave the medical wing of the base for good. He had been staring at the white walls for so long that he already knew all the cracks in the ceiling. If he had to stay another second here he would go mad.

"Yes." Kabuto pushed the ballpoint pen and began writing on his clipboard. "I can finally say that your ban is lifted and you can start training today."

"Finally." A sigh of relief left the young Uchiha as he finally could begin his path to power.

A pointed look was sent over the rounded glasses of the doctor. "I advise you to take it easy for the first few days, though. You have been out of commission for two weeks; your body will need to become accustomed to exercise again."

Sasuke doesn't hear him. He had blocked the medic-nin as he jumped off the bed and inspected the rejuvenated muscles in his arms. He was in top shape. As if he has just been born again.

An arrogant smirk spread his lips wide.

Seeing this, the medic shook his head exasperatedly. He just knew the boy would be back in the medical ward in a few days time, if not sooner.

A large commotion could be heard outside the ward, increasing in tone as the seconds passed. Both ninjas seemed captivated by the sound as a continuous pain-filled scream accompanied it. With a bang, the doors opened abruptly as three medics pushed in a cart with a bleeding, screaming shinobi atop it.

As the cart reached a stop, the elder female medic Sasuke usually saw checking on the patient appeared through the door.

"Status?" The woman reached the bleeding shinobi with a calm air and a determined stance.

"His right kidney is punctured, four of his ribs are cracked and his left ankle is twisted backwards." The young medic informed her as he and the other two transferred the injured onto one of the beds.

"How?"

A knowing look passed the medic. "He was training with the Commander."

The older woman sighed in frustration. "When will that girl learn that the purpose of training is to better the ninja, not break them. Be on alert, I doubt this one will be the last one we receive today."

Sasuke frowned. _Commander?_

"The white-haired girl…" The boy turned back to the grey-haired ninja. "She did that?"

"Of course. Rei is of the opinion that the only way to learn is through pain." Kabuto took off his glasses and wiped the smudges off them, already accustomed to these incidents. "In reality, that is just an excuse for her to indulge in her violent, barbaric behavior, and to vent her anger on someone unable to match her in combat."

"So, she's just another sadist." Sasuke wasn't surprised. Everyone in Oto seemed to follow the example of their leader when it came to attitude.

"Yes, but the difference between Rei and the other Oto ninja is her strength." Kabuto felt the start of a bitter taste in his mouth. This happened every time he spoke about _her_. "She far exceeds the ninja here, which is why she is in charge of them."

"Her?" The Uchiha's brows shot up in disbelief. "She's what, fifteen?"

"Sixteen, actually. And yes, she commands the Oto forces, making her one level below Orochimaru-sama."

 _If she is just behind the Sannin that means—_

"So, she's the second strongest of all of you."

The bitter taste just turned to one like the smell of putrefied carcass.

"Unfortunately." Kabuto grimaced in barely suppressed disgust.

"Who is she?" Sasuke asked perplexed. Why would someone as young as her, who could be as strong as the Sannin, still remain by his side. Why not try and take over?

—What kept her here?

"She's Orochimaru's only successful apprentice. That should explain everything." Kabuto arranged his glasses back over his eyes, making them shine eerily. His tone had taken a strange lilt, as if the earlier disgust had just simply vanished. "The destruction Konoha sustained during our surprise attack was coordinated by her."

Sasuke turned sharply. That girl had such influence and power here that she was tasked with such missions?

It hit him then.

She was the step he had to climb to reach Orochimaru.

His heart skipped a beat.

If Sasuke beat her, then he could kill the Snake Sannin and leave this place to hunt his brother. He would be more than prepared to meet his sibling in combat if he managed to destroy the two Oto shinobi.

Arrogance reared its ugly head back over his features.

Seeing this, Kabuto already read him like a book. The boy was going to challenge Rei the moment he stepped out of his ward.

The medic had to bite the interior of his cheek to keep himself from smiling.

* * *

 _Kick._

The shinobi's body hit the trunk of a tree with such force that his ribs cracked upon impact.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he witnessed the brutal display from a vantage point in the trees. After leaving the hospital wing, he had gone in search of the Sound Commander and found her in one of the outside training rounds. From what he saw, Sasuke still wasn't convinced this was training. It looked more like a beat-down.

As soon as he entered the clearing, the Uchiha heir sensed others hidden in the trees watching this brutal display with barely suppressed fervor. Sasuke knew that they knew he was here as did the Commander. He could just _feel_ it.

With the addition of the strength the Cursed Mark brought, his senses had sharpened tremendously. Now, Sasuke was strong enough that he had beaten the Kyuubi Jinchuriki with one tail. Orochimaru had explained to him about Naruto's fate. It had been a shock if Sasuke were honest. To think that the dobe was the holder of the Kyuubi, the 'Demon Fox' that almost destroyed Konoha thirteen years ago.

—It was terrifyingly overwhelming.

"Anyone else? Come on!"

Sasuke's musings were brought to a halt as the gravelly voice of the Commander echoed in the clearing. She was eyeing the other shinobi with an intense predatory look, bloodlust dilating her dark pupils until there was almost no icy-blue iris left. No one dared to make that perilous step, afraid of joining their comrades in Rei's world of pain.

—But there was one brave (or stupid) soul who took on that challenge.

Sasuke dropped from his place in the verdant foliage and silently landed on the grounds.

"Doesn't look like you have much of a challenge."

Rei turned to him with a passive gaze before snorting distastefully.

"What, these idiots?" She pointed towards them with disgust. "They're the low-ranks. I'm trying to improve them, but it doesn't seem to be working." A cruel smirk appeared as she shrugged nonchalantly. "Peons will be peons, I guess."

"How about a real challenger?"

The passivity in her took a more cynical turn.

"Don't make me laugh. I told you already you're no match for me."

That darkened the boy's mood. The white one's arrogance had no limits it seemed.

…Good for him that he realized the way to goad the girl.

"Is that all you are?" Sasuke's smirk caught the Commander's attention. "It's easy to wipe the floor with useless shinobi, but when you have a real challenger, you back out. I guess you're all bark and no bite."

Eyes narrowed to slits as knuckles popped with an animalistic urge to tear. Sasuke could already see the bloodlust rising in the girl with each word he spat out.

Rei paused as she tilted her head to the side, watching and observing the boy with those predatory eyes. And like the Cheshire Cat her lips spread into a wide, eerie grin.

If her intended motive was to scare him…it worked. The way she looked now had the hair on Sasuke's neck stand up, electrified. It was disconcerting how she appeared human in one second just to change in the other into something children feared in the dark.

"Oi…you're making me angry." Her eyes widened until the whites of her eyes could be seen. "You _don't_ want that."

With the instinct to flee kept tightly wrapped, Sasuke pushed forward, knowing that he could win this fight. "I hear that you were the one coordinating the attack in Konoha. I guess I can see why Sound lost."

Five shadows materialized around him, all ready to defend their Commander's honor.

"Hey!" One of the four growled at him. "Watch your—"

"Stand down!" Rei shouted all traces of a smile gone. There was a somber quality to her now as the life inside her eyes had gotten so cold, only the icebergs could compete. "He wants a fight? Then I'll give him one."

"Commander…" The tallest among the shinobi, the blonde one, recognized the perilous situation and what it could escalate into.

"Clear out!"

It wasn't a request and, despite knowing what was about to happen, the shinobi obeyed without pause.

It was just the two of them now, just Sasuke and Rei and the tension growing between them.

"So…" Fingers cracked again as Rei slowly circled around the Uchiha. "You think that just because you're currently Orochimaru's favorite, you're _special_ around here?" Her teeth came out, contorting her face unpleasantly. "That a few weeks in Sound gives you the right to challenge _me_? Unacceptable." Rei stopped in her pacing as she craned her neck. Inhaling deeply with her eyes closed, Rei opened her now golden irises surrounded by a deep black pit.

"I will show you why I'm top dog around here."

Sasuke smirked as he brought out a kunai and positioned himself defensively, the cursed Seal's black ink spreading all over his body. "Finally, you're done talking. I was starting to fall asleep."

A cold smirk ghosted past the girl's lips before she bolted at break-neck speed. Sasuke barely had the chance to dodge the incoming roundhouse kick to his head as he rolled out of the way. From his lower position, Sasuke threw his kunai towards the girl's stomach only to have her twist in such an inhuman way that Sasuke thought not possible without breaking some bones.

Sasuke didn't wait to ponder as he back-flipped from the girl, putting some distance between them for his next attack. Before hitting ground, Sasuke arranged his fingers into the Tiger sign and blew a mighty fireball. The miniature sun scorched everything in sight as it sped off towards the white haired girl.

One moment he could see the girl and in the next she was swallowed by the fire.

Dark eyes narrowed in suspicion as Sasuke looked around for signs of the swordsman. His eyes widened when arms protruded from the ground and caught his ankles in a vice grip.

The action was reminiscent of what Kakashi had once done to him during the bell test and Sasuke wasn't about to get fooled twice. Channeling a Chidori in his palm, he crashed it into the ground below him to force the 'mole' out of her hiding place. In the process, he managed to also bruise himself as earth exploded everywhere, cutting his exposed skin.

Jumping from the destroyed sight, he landed not too far but was immediately swept off his feet as a fist crashed into his back sending him flying into a tree.

With a groan of pain, Sasuke pulled himself to his feet. Poking his chest he just knew one of his ribs had cracked upon impact. Spitting a globe of blood, Sasuke saw the girl in the location he had been just a few second ago. The same dark smirk was on her face and the heir wondered how she had gotten out of the ground so quickly and without injuries.

It hit him then…the Rei in the ground must have been a clone while the real one remained hidden somewhere and waited for her chance to take him by surprise.

 _The bitch thinks she can beat me with tricks?! She has no idea what—_

Sasuke blinked out of his red haze as something caught his attention.

He saw it then—

Her fist was covered in grey scales.

Sasuke's eyes narrowed as he inspected the hand more carefully with his now activated Sharingan. It looked withered and scaled just like a lizard's with veins protruding. Sasuke then realized that this was her Cursed Seal making its appearance, but what alarmed him was the fact that only her hand was 'awakened'. The rest of her body was still normal with the exception of the eyes.

It wasn't like his, the Cursed Seal. For one, the scales were too thick, giving off an armor like appearance. And as Rei uncurled her fist, he saw sharp curved talons resembling knives decorating the ends of her fingers.

Right in front of his eyes, the skin changed—it morphed back into russet skin and black claws shortened into chipped human nails all under a few seconds.

He'd never seen any of the Sound Four be able to do something like that. Even he couldn't change in such a short amount of time, much less just a limb.

"What are you?"

Her lips parted giving him the Cheshire Cat grin, complete with sharp-needle like fangs.

"I'm _special_." She said in a mocking tone.

Rei propelled herself towards him without even a hint, catching the front of his shirt into a fist. Sasuke felt himself thrown in the air before he hit the ground hard enough to create tiny fissures. A barrage of frenzied fists reigned upon him as he tried to defend himself as best he could from his position.

Finding an opening in her onslaught, Sasuke connected his Sharingan with her eyes and unleashed a strong enough genjutsu to give her pause. The two seconds it gave him, had his fist flying into the girl's face, making her back off. Unsheathing a kunai, he thrust it upwards into her stomach and kicked the imbedded kunai until it was handle-deep inside her.

Rei backed away with a howl giving Sasuke time to get to his feet and form another Chidori in his palm. Charging her with the birds chirping in his hand, Sasuke threw the jutsu and before his eyes he saw her arm morph back into the gray scales, only this time, the hand completely changed and grew—it grew large enough that it resembled a shield, covering the entire of her body. Sasuke didn't have time or the control to change the direction of his Chidori as it collided with the strange, scaled shield.

 _Boom._

Sasuke got thrown back as the impact produced a bomb of lightning.

Hitting the ground hard, Sasuke gazed horrified at the girl. Her arm looked like a living, breathing shield complete with scales and muscles underneath.

It was alive. It was a part of her.

 _What. The. Fuck._

The girl moved the shield away from her body and with her free hand pulled the kunai out of her stomach, her eyes rolling into her head for a second before returning to the same bloodthirsty one with the awful smirk still in place.

Only one word registered in Sasuke's mind upon witnessing this macabre scene—

"You're a monster."

"Oh…" Her grin widened. "Just a little."

The shield-arm desiccated into clawed tendrils and shot off towards him at high speed. A cat and mouse game ensued with Sasuke running for his life as the tendrils hunted him down, ready to slash him to pieces. The Uchiha heir knew not to even try and engage them as he could see the easy way they cut through bark and toppled tree after tree. But he at least knew the cursed girl's range wasn't very wide, as she had to run after him so the tendrils could have a chance at cutting him.

Taking out several tag bombs he had on his person, Sasuke subtlety pinned them to a tree as he feigned exhaustion atop the thick branches. He waited just for the exact moment the tendrils reached him to detonate the bombs and Shunshin away from the branch.

Arriving on the ground floor in a gust of smoke and leaves, Sasuke caught the moment the tree exploded and, in triumph, he heard the girl yell in pain.

The Uchiha boy knew that those bombs wouldn't be enough to kill the girl or even render her unconscious, so he had to act fast. After witnessing her strange Cursed Seal, Sasuke knew that he needed to take things to a higher level.

—He needed to use his Cursed Seal.

Feeling the taint spread throughout his body, Sasuke grimaced as the strain set his blood on fire and his muscles to grind against one another. His hair grew, his teeth and nails elongated into fangs and claws, his skin turned into scales of a dusty color, and the massive wing-like hands grew out of his back.

Sasuke breathed in deeply.

He was ready.

"My, my, you finally realized what you're dealing it." The girl's voice echoed around him with no exact location he could pinpoint. "Tell me, do you really think your baby Seal will help you?"

"Come out and see for yourself, unless you prefer cowering in the shadows." Sasuke shouted out shamelessly as an arrogant smirk spread his dark tinted lips.

A horrid cackle was his response.

"I'm gonna enjoy wiping that smirk off your face, brat."

Sasuke felt it before he could see it as he propelled himself away. An earth shattering boom resounded as the ground where he had just been had been fractured by a Wind blade, causing a wide fissure in the earth.

 _A Wind user?_

Red Sharingan eyes widened in surprise as the girl appeared right beside him in the air. Both her arms were now awakened, the knife talons extended and headed right towards him. Sasuke caught the girl's wrists in time, but that didn't discourage the swordsman. Instead, it propelled her to head-butt the Uchiha hard enough that his nose broke, blood splattering all over her face.

Dazed, the boy let go of her wrists giving the girl the opportunity to lock her hands into a fist and crash them atop Sasuke's head. The force behind it was strong enough to send the Uchiha boy crashing back into the ground, breaking another few ribs in the process.

Coughing blood, Sasuke tried to get back up, but missed his chance as Rei landed, feet first, right on his stomach.

His response was immediate—vomit erupted out of his throat, coating himself in it and choking on it.

Rei wasted no time as she launched a fist right into his cheek, making him see stars. Rei made sure to leave him hurting enough that he wouldn't be able to even try and concentrate on trying to attack her.

Her hands then clenched around his wrists threateningly.

"What was that you said? That _I_ cower in the dark?"

 _Crack._

Sasuke screamed as both wrists were snapped like twigs.

Rei rose to her feet and looked at the pitiful sight beneath her without an ounce of mercy. Her eyes still held a vicious frenzy and her teeth grinded against another in suppressed violence.

She then did the unthinkable.

Her heavy boot crashed against the boy's face in complete dominance and humiliation.

"Feels great, doesn't it?" She purred as the sickening smirk returned. "Not for you, for me I mean. I can't even explain in words how it feels to have that person that talked trash to you on the ground eating his own words. For that person to realize what a huge fucking mistake they made."

All traces of arrogance evaporated within a second, leaving in its stead a hideous, wide-eyed expression.

"Because that's what you fucking did, you shithead!"

A barrage of kicks began, hitting any and every part of Sasuke's body. The boy didn't even have the strength to defend himself as his breathing hadn't even recovered or the pain in his arms subsided.

"You idiots never learn! You come here thinking you're hot shit when in fact you're _nothing_!" Each kick became more brutal than the last and the force behind them grew by the second. "But then you learn! Oh yes, you learn! Everyone is replaceable! You are just pawns here! So do us all a favor and go eat shit and die!"

Just as Rei was about to deliver a bone crushing kick, chains wrapped around her body and pulled her away from the Uchiha.

"Commander, enough!"

The small group of ninjas that had remained behind to watch the spectacle finally jumped in as they realized that their Commander was venturing into a no return zone. Two of the ninja gathered around the Uchiha boy as they opened their medical bags to effective immediately treat him. The blonde one from before used a Summoning Jutsu to call forth heavy, chakra absorbing chains to prevent Rei from her continuing on her war path.

—It was an insurance the Snake Sannin had personally taught him _just_ for Rei.

"Remember Orochimaru-sama's orders!"

The sound of their master's name seemed to bring back some reason to her possessed mind. The buzzing sound in her head ceased leaving the outside sounds to crawl back into her skull. Even the haze in front of her eyes cleared enough to see the damage she had caused. Little by little, her struggling ceased until there was nothing left but her ragged breathing. The Cursed Seal slowly retracted until even her eyes returned to normal.

"Get these chains off me..."

Rei's voice was hoarse as if she had smoked far too much for her age, but it was clear. Her mind was her own again.

Slowly, the blond called back the chains as he carefully regarded the girl. His Commander was a challenging person, who knew how to trick people to get them to lower their guard so she could attack.

But, fortunately, the girl had no intention of attacking the boy again.

She approached the Uchiha's barely conscious body and signaled the medics to make way. Reluctantly, they did, but stood ever vigilante. If the boy died, they _all_ will die. Painfully and slowly.

Rei crouched low, grabbing the boy's chin and shook his head hard enough so what little attention he had was on her.

Seeing Sasuke's dazed eyes roll over to her, a wide grin broke Rei's grave face.

"Welcome to Sound, bitch!"

* * *

"Have you lost your goddamn mind, Rei?!"

"He started it!"

The Sannin and his student were in a large study area. The room was gothic in design with hundreds of books lined along the walls and scrolls and document scattered over a large mahogany desk of the deepest shade of red. Lanterns were hung from the ceiling emitting a dull light as if the candles couldn't even be bothered to produce luminosity. And if that wasn't dark enough, there were vials with unknown substances scattered around and various shapes of skulls and bones placed on shelves and mantles.

—All in all, the room suited the Sannin's taste.

Unfortunately, _his_ space had been used as a screaming tournament for the past fifteen minutes.

"What is this, kindergarden?!" The man hissed in disbelief. "I don't give a damn who started it, you finished it! The boy was supposed to start his training _today_! And you just set it back for another couple of weeks judging by his medical report!"

"He provoked me." Rei shouted as she felt like tearing her hair out of her head in frustration. "In front of my ninja no less!"

The Sannin backed away in incredulity at the girl's presupposition.

" _Your_ ninja? As far as I remember, they are _my_ ninja just as you are." Snake pupils thinned into barely visible lines. "And my ninja listen to orders. No harm was to befall the Uchiha. And what do you do? You—"

"What did you want me to do?!" Rei finally snapped, interrupting the man before her haughtily. "Let that little turd belittle me without repercussion? The Oto shinobi would have _never_ respected me again! I don't give a shit if he's your new Kimimaro, I will crush—"

The kick had been delivered so fast the girl had no time to defend herself. Thrown across the room, Rei hit the wall hard, leaving an indent in the rock.

"Do _not_ raise your voice at me, girl! Remember _who_ you're talking to!"

Rei picked herself off the ground and leaned against the wall, one hand on her stomach. Her sensei had known exactly where to hit her—in the wound the brat had created with a kunai. She fell to her knees as she puked blood and saliva, coughing her guts out.

"Get up!"

With some difficulty, Rei did, but she had to use the wall to keep herself upright. The swordsman kept silent in regards to the harsh treatment since she knew she had pushed it too far.

"I'm sorry, sensei." Rei wheezed as she spat more blood. "But I'm not the only one at fault here."

"I know, Rei." The Sannin exhaled heavily, some of his anger deflating. "Your second told me how it started, but you should have known better. You are the Commander of my troops. You should be level-headed and calculating. Were you so blinded by your ego that you didn't see that the boy was goading you?" He then scoffed scathingly. "No, as always, you let that short temper of yours rule you, you _foolish_ girl."

"And why the hell did you have to use the Cursed Seal?" The Sannin gritted his teeth. "I have to intentionally try to kill you for you to take advantage of it in combat and now you decide to use it, when you could have beaten the boy easily without it?"

Rei crossed her arms conceitedly. "I wanted him to know what he was dealing with. Scaring the shit out of him was a bonus."

The Sannin raised his hands in a strangling manner but decided against it at the last minute. Sometimes the girl could heat up his brain so much that he forgot himself and the red haze took over.

"You are infuriating, Rei. And a rampaging idiot." Orochimaru spat furiously as he picked up one of the skulls off his desk and threw it against the wall, smashing it to pieces. "You know better than anyone that you can barely control yourself emotionally when you're using the second stage of the Cursed Seal! You could have killed him! And damaged yourself beyond repair!"

Rei let her head hang as she hid her biting lip from view. She hated it when she got a lecture, much less when she was called an unruly child, an idiot by her mentor.

Orochimaru paced behind his desk furiously, his hands behind his back and eyes narrowed into slits.

"I had plans for you and the boy. You were supposed to gain his trust. Make him lower his guard around you, so for when the time came, you could easily overpower him without using violence. I do not want to relocate into a broken and beaten down host."

A thoughtless snort escaped the girl before she could stop it. "Fat chance of that happening now."

The glare directed at her had her aware of Orochimaru's ten second homicidal rule.

She hastily tried to steer the conversation in a different direction. "If you had told me what your intentions were, then I wouldn't have fought him."

Orochimaru raised an unbelieving brow.

"Fine!" Rei threw her hands up as even she didn't believe her words. "I wouldn't have beaten him so bloody nor humiliated him in such a fashion. But think of it this way—he'll try to surpass me now. If I was in his place I would do anything to beat the person that literally kicked me in the dirt."

"That is true. His pride will never let him forget." The Sannin then frowned. "But that doesn't mean he will miraculously trust you. In fact, it'll make him trust you even less if you tried befriending him."

Rei could do nothing but shrug. He was right, but then again…"Just for the record sensei, me trying to make friends with him in the first place was a _terrible_ idea. You know I've never tried befriending anyone here. It would seem pretty suspicious if I tried befriending the Uchiha of all people."

The mood in the room took a sudden downturn as the temperature seemed to lower to below freezing levels. Rei felt the skin on her arms prickle and the hair on the back of her neck stand up.

There was something murderous emanating in the air, and all of it seemed to wave off from the Snake Sannin.

"From what I recall…" Orochimaru began in a low, hissing voice. "you know _exactly_ how to befriend an Uchiha."

 _Ouch_. Rei winced. The memory was a bitter one and Rei hated the fact that her sensei used it as a weapon against her whenever he found it convenient.

"Ugh, leave." Orochimaru waved the girl away in disgust. "You have irritated me enough for today. I need to think in peace."

Rei hastily limped out of his office and headed in the direction of the medical ward. The stomach wound wasn't closing fast enough for her liking.

The swordsman didn't understand why the Sannin was so upset. She had just delivered a well deserved lecture in manners and knowing your place. The Uchiha boy was a brat through and through, and she would love nothing more than to beat him senseless once again. Beatings were the only way his kind could ever learn.

She just didn't understand what the boy thought he could accomplish in challenging her. She hadn't been kidding when she told him he was no match for her. Why couldn't he have listened?

Rei's train of thought suddenly halted as the form of Kabuto walked out of the shadows. There seemed to be nothing out of place as he continued on his pay, but Rei knew better.

The man stopped just a few paces past her.

"My my, you left Sasuke-kun in quite a state." Kabuto's false voice grated on the girl's already frazzled nerves. "I'm surprised you didn't kill him given your history." His head turned towards her, the torch light making his glasses gleam eerily. "Did you lose your temper again, Rei?"

"Watch it, Kabuto." Teeth flashed as Rei glared at him. "I got no qualms in punching you straight through the wall."

"Which would just reinforce my point." Kabuto rearranged his glasses as he sighed. "I will never understand why Orochimaru-sama keeps someone like you around. But then again, Orochimaru-sama does like to collect beasts of all sorts."

The glare soon turned into a vicious smirk as Rei turned towards him slowly. In the dim light, she appeared positively feral, the shadows dancing across her face grimly.

She took a step closer.

"I find it very interesting that after his checkup with you, the brat came straight to me for a fight." Rei stopped just a foot away from the medic. "Did you whisper in his ear, Kabuto?"

"Why would I do such a thing?" He was good. Much too good in hiding behind his lies. Rei didn't expect less from a former spy. "Unlike you, I know better than to go against Orochimaru-sama's orders. I am not as petty as you are, Rei."

"Petty, no. Vengeful, yes." Her fingers cracked as she felt the anger build up inside her. "I know your mind, traitor."

A mocking huff. "Do you?"

Rei stepped close enough that she breached the man's personal space. Kabuto didn't seem to mind as not even a hair was out of place. He knew Rei much too well to be intimidated by her.

"One of these days you're gonna slip up and not a damn fucking thing you say will change sensei's mind." A cruel, bloodthirsty grin spread her lips. "And I _will_ be the one lowering the axe over your neck."

"The way I see it, you are much closer to that day than I am." Kabuto's expression morphed into one of true worry, but Rei was not fooled—she could see the sublet hints of malice and sadistic delight underneath. "You should be more careful, Rei. I _fear_ for your life. There's only so much Orochimaru-sama can tolerate before he finally snaps."

Rei snorted. She wished to could bring forth extreme violence, but Rei knew that if she goofed a second time today, Orochimaru will send her to the prisons below.

 _Shudder._

So she resolved to do the one thing Kabuto hated the most—Rei spat phlegm on his sandals, hitting the majority of his toes.

His mood soured instantly as a grimace of disgust contorted his features.

Rei gave him a smug smile before turning on her heel and limping away.

"Do you want me to check your injuries, Rei?" He called after her derisively as he wiped the phlegm off his toes with a tissue.

The bird was his answer.

Kabuto smirked in pleasure once he felt Rei disappear more and more into the bowels of the base.

 _It went better than I thought._

* * *

 _ **Foot Note:**_ Wooohoooh!

Got this chapter out of the way. The fight scene isn't the best (I really hate writing them), but it got the result—Rei beat the shit out of Sasuke. Goal achieved.

If you're wondering about Rei's strange Cursed Seal it will be explained in the next chapter. And don't you worry—she still has got a few more tricks up her sleeve.

 _ **PS:**_ I love writing Rei's catty interactions with Kabuto. I find them hilarious. They just throw insults back and forth and are just one step away from killing each other. Hehehe…ahhh…


	6. The Monster Inside Us

_**Author Note:**_ I made a slight change in the first chapter when Rei shows her own Cursed Seal. She doesn't outright reveal it, just indicates that it is on her neck.

To **Infinite Eternity** – Bwahahahaa! Rei kiss Kabuto? Even she's not _that_ crazy! But if she did, I wouldn't put it past her to furiously scrub her mouth with soap after the deed :D. And in response to your first comment, how _did_ you imagine Rei to look like? I'm actually quite interested since I only described her three chapters in. Is her personality in contrast to her appearance? Interesting…

To all the readers that favorited, followed and reviewed my work, thank you so much! It's really appreciated.

Read on!

* * *

 _ **Otokagure - Three years ago**_

" _Are you_ sure _about this?"_

 _Rei asked as she looked concerned at the human sized tank on the floor she was supposed to crawl inside of._

 _She and Orochimaru were currently in Sound's secret base for experimental research somewhere in the northern part of Rice Country. A year ago, Rei and Kimimaro had been implanted with the Cursed Seal of Earth, one of the two new seals created by Orochimaru himself, cultivated from Jugo's unique powers._

 _While her body had accepted the Seal readily, Kimimaro's had had a more difficult time as his body kept trying to reject it. It had taken him many painful days for the seal to finally merge into his DNA and so, he was not a potential candidate for the next phase in Orochimaru's project._

 _Which, to Rei's understanding, was an alternative to the Cursed Seal—a mutated form of it._

" _Would I ask you to do this if I wasn't?" Orochimaru's brow rose imperiously._

" _Yes."_

 _The man chuckled lowly. "Trust, Rei, is a virtue. I'm sure I've earned that after all these years."_

 _Now it was Rei's turn to raise her brow in disbelief. "Why would you think that?"_

" _I haven't killed you yet despite the numerous threats." The Sannin simply explained as if it was an everyday occurrence…which sometimes it was._

 _Rei rolled her eyes immaturely. Leaving his side, she circled around the tank, her eyes following the many tubes connected to machines and other smaller tanks filled with dark crimson viscous liquid. She touched the transparent glass which housed the unknown fluid and it was warm._

 _She swallowed dryly._ Is this supposed to go inside me?

" _What will it do to me?" Cold sweat broke out as she eyed the dark red liquid. There was something ominous to it that gave the girl the shivers._

" _It will make you stronger." Orochimaru said as he crossed his arms, his eyes appraisingly inspecting his creation. "_ Better _."_

 _Rei scowled at the hidden jab at her abilities. "I'm already strong enough. I don't need to be more."_

 _Orochimaru scoffed as his sleek eyes fell on her coldly. "There's always room for improvement. I want you to be the best, not 'close enough'."_

 _The swordsman frowned as she scratched at her neck where the Seal was. Her growing anxiety was feeding the Seal and she could feel it wanting to get out, practically eating away at her skin._

 _There were a lot of things that could go wrong with this 'project'. The Cursed Seal of Heaven and Earth had both been dangerous from the start and not everyone survived the trial. And now, Orochimaru wanted to take it to the next level._

" _Sensei…" Fear was now visible in Rei's eyes. "What if this kills me?"_

" _It won't." Orochimaru's tone left no doubt in the experiment's success. "That's why I chose_ you _."_

" _I don't like this." Rei crossed her arms as the coldness of the room prickled her skin. She was only in her underwear and chest binds and she swore she already felt herself catching a cold._

" _You will be fine, Rei." Orochimaru sighed as he sternly pointed at the contraption. "Now, get in the tank."_

 _With a chocked groan, Rei did as told and placed one foot inside the tank, before pausing. She looked at her sensei pleadingly, but the man simply narrowed his eyes threateningly. If she won't go in willingly then he'll dunk her inside it._

 _Rei cursed lowly as she settled in. Orochimaru made a signal towards the two-way mirror and a researcher came out through a side door. He approached Rei and clinically set up sensors on her body to monitor her vitals as well as attach an oxygen mask to her face._

 _As the hatch to the tank began to close, Rei found her sensei fiddling with the knobs on the machines and moved the mask enough so she could speak._

" _Sensei." The man turned and saw the grave resolve in his pupil's eyes. "If this changes me into a monster…_ kill _me."_

 _Orochimaru didn't give her an answer as the hatch closed with a metallic click. With a slow intake of breath, the Sannin initiated the procedure._

 _Rei's breath hitched as she heard the small siren blear. The tubes connected to the tank had hatches that opened and with her fear rising, Rei saw the crimson liquid travel through the tubes._

Oh, fuck. Fuck. Fuck. Fuuuuck!

 _Her breath goes out of control as the viscous liquid reached her cheeks and Rei had to lift her head to keep her head aloft. Was she supposed to be fully covered in_ this _?!_

" _Sensei!" Rei squeaked as she tried to squish her face against the glass. Maybe if it wasn't for the mask, she would have succeeded._

" _Don't worry, Rei. You won't drown." She heard her sensei's bored intonation._

Gulp.

 _Rei let her head sink as the liquid filled the tank full._

 _Minutes passed and nothing happened._

 _The swordsman floated peacefully in crimson fluid, barely seeing anything in front of her._

 _As impatience started to settle in, it was then that she felt it—_

 _Heat._

 _Too much heat._

 _Agitation followed as the heat rose to unbearable heights. She started struggling in the tank—the heat now turned scalding, burning her skin red._

 _It was everywhere. Inside her. In her skin. In her muscles. In her bones. In her blood._

It fucking hurts!

 _Rei screamed soundlessly in the oxygen mask as her limbs flailed wildly in the viscous liquid. With all her might she banged against the glass walls of her prison, to escape this horrible burning, but it was useless. The glass just wouldn't crack._

 _Tears mingled with the glutinous crimson and Rei screamed and pleaded and yelled for her sensei. She needed to get out of this tank! She was fucking dying!_

 _Rei felt a fire raging inside her skull, burning what was left of her mind. She screamed and screamed until her voice grew hoarse and nothing came out._

 _She was dying. She knew it. Whatever Orochimaru had infected her with was painfully killing her, decimating her organs until she was nothing more than a husk._

 _Through the pain she could feel something disturbing in her arm, a tingling sensation like thousands of ants biting her. Looking down she is greeted to a horrifying sight, one born straight out of the most bloodcurdling nightmares—her arm is no longer human but heavily scaled, sliced into two halves with numerous sharp talons at the end. There were spikes protruding from underneath the iron colored scales and what was worse, her forked arm seemed to be splitting once again._

 _The tingling sensation spread out throughout her body and Rei feared looking down. She did not want to see what other part of her was changed._

Sensei! What did you do?!

 _Her body reached its limit._

 _Rei's whole body started seizing inside the tank, her muscles constricting painfully, but her mind still clung to the edges of consciousness. Her deformed hands started hitting the glass, to break free of this wretched torture. Ultimately, it was her forehead that cracked the thick glass. She couldn't even tell if her skin split from the force of it, but it didn't matter in the end._

 _Who cared about a little cut when they were already on the way to their grave?_

 _Everything was going dark. Her struggle was losing strength. Her sight was growing dim._

 _The last sight her almost blackened vision landed on was the muddied image of her sensei pacing wildly as he screamed something incoherently at his subordinates._

Help…me…

 _Rei finally sank into deep oblivion, the faint beat of her heart the last sound gracing her ears._

* * *

Groan.

Sasuke grimaced as he returned to the world of the living. With each breath he took he felt his chest constrict and it hurt. It hurt badly.

While his mind was fuzzy, he could still pinpoint the signs and smells of chemicals and sickness. All scents associated with hospitals. And then he realized the reason as to why he would be in one—

His grimace deepened.

"Finally, you are awake."

Dark obsidian eyes slid over to the man sitting on a chair next to his bed with an old tome in his lap. The man in question regarded him with a flat gaze coupled with a sheen of thinly veiled annoyance in his golden snake eyes.

"You foolish boy…" The tome shut with an echoing thud and flying dust. "What possessed you to challenge Rei?"

Sasuke turned his head away, embarrassed that he had been so badly beaten. He could feel his wrists in plaster and metal crutches as the girl had broken them ruthlessly. Almost half of his body was bandaged and the other half was black and blue.

"Do you really believe that you would have achieved something by fighting her?" Orochimaru rose from his seat and slowly approached the boy, eyes narrowed into slits. "Let me answer that for you: _No_. Not a damned thing. The only thing you accomplished was returning to this hospital bed, in worse shape than when you came here!"

Taking a deep breath, the Sannin regained his bearing. This wasn't the time to get angry.

"But then again it wasn't entirely your fault. Rei should have known better…" The man pinched the bridge of his nose as just the mere mention of his pupil had the veins in his temple boil with exasperation. "I swear, you children are the worst."

Sasuke said nothing. His arrogance is what led him to this state and he wasn't going to damage his ego even further.

"Now, you listen to me, boy." Orochimaru regarded him coldly. "You will stay in this bed until you fully recover. And after that you will stay far away from Rei unless you want to return to this ward, or worse, a coffin. And trust me, that girl will kill you despite my orders. Rei is disobedient like that…or a brave idiot, depends on the perspective."

"What…" Sasuke licked his dry lips as his throat felt parched. "Is she?"

Orochimaru sighed deeply. It was time for the Uchiha heir to understand a few things.

"Did you know there are two Cursed Seals? One of Haven and one of Earth?" At the boy's confusion, the Sannin explained. "You and the Sound Four posses the Cursed Seal of Haven while Kimimaro and Rei posses the one of Earth. But Rei's Seal is a special one." Orochimaru sat back in his chair and intertwined his fingers over his knees. "After the Seal is applied to a person, it takes a few days for the user's body to accommodate to the drastic changes. Rei's body was very receptive to it and because of that I decided to further experiment with it."

The memory of that day when Rei's life changed not exactly for the better, but he couldn't say it was for the worst either. Somewhere below the middle.

"What resulted was a mutation of the Seal—a stronger version of it, a better one with heightened senses and superhuman abilities."

Orochimaru often wondered if it had been worth it. He remembered the days after the conclusion of the experiment—the hours in which Rei screamed until her throat bled, the unpredictable heart palpitations (once she even flat-lined), the painful muscle contractions that contorted her body to disturbing extents, the random transformations of her body accompanied by bottomless rage and bloodlust. Those had been hard days and to be truthful, he hadn't been sure his pupil would survive it. But she had and despite everything, his goal had been achieved—she was stronger.

"Her arm…changed." Sasuke remembered with slight revulsion as her russet skin turned to something inhuman.

"Yes. That is _one_ of the abilities Rei gained." Orochimaru drawled as he turned pensive. "Unfortunately, it had its drawbacks. The mutations affected Rei's temperament severely, making her exceedingly aggressive. Rei has always had a vicious streak, but she was never prone to violent outbursts or lack of control. Now, Rei can barely enter the Second Stage without losing her grip on herself and when she does, she is nothing more than a wild animal striking at anyone and anything."

'Berserker' Rei is what his shinobi called her. Not one born out of derision, but out of skewed respect and deep fear. But even knowing this, Rei _loathed_ that name with a passion. She struck any of the Oto ninja down whenever a whisper of that name flew past her acute hearing.

—Orochimaru thought it suited her nicely.

"She's a psycho…"

The Sannin huffed in dry amusement. "Rei is _complicated_. Let's leave it at that."

The smirk slipped off his thin lips before settling in a tight line.

"Rei is my only successful subject in this project." Spidery pallid fingers gently caressed the tattered cover of his tome. "I have tried making more. Unfortunately, they either died during the procedures or went mad with bloodlust. I had to abandon it soon."

It had been a sad day for him. As a man of science to realize that despite his first success, he couldn't reproduce it no matter what he did was _upsetting,_ to put it mildly.

"So you see, I advise you against challenging her again." Orochimaru rose from his seat, tome in hand. "Rei can't help it, especially when she gets angry. If she kills you, I _will_ kill her and I don't have the patience to dig two holes."

Sasuke watched the Sannin leave the room and only then did the female doctor with the stern glare appear to tend to his broken body.

The man's words gave the boy food to ponder on. Despite what the Sannin thought, he still couldn't get the image of Rei being a monster out of his head. A shudder ran under his skin at the thought of what she actually looked like in the Second Stage. Sasuke knew that he didn't exactly look pretty when he changed, but her…He didn't even want to imagine it.

Sasuke's expression contorted into a heavy scowl. He could feel his blood boiling in his veins as rage took over his bruised body. He could get past him losing horribly, but he couldn't put away the fact that she had humiliated him, beaten him when he was already down and spat on him like he was nothing!

His hands clenched into tight fists.

He was an Uchiha! He was better than most!

Nobody treated him like this! Especially not some trashy creature that crawled out of the Sannin's experimental tubes!

When he got better, he vowed to himself that he will train with Orochimaru, night and day if he had to, just so he could smash that girl's face in the ground and maybe break her wrists as well.

And then we will see who the one laughing really was…

* * *

The room was large, dug deep into the earth. Enough that you could feel the earth's chill seep into your bones and the humidity clot your lungs.

There was barely any light illuminating the stone interior, just some barley alive torches clinging to the walls.

But it was alright. Rei didn't need those torches to see in the dark.

 _Punch_.

A tooth flew.

 _Kick_.

A bone cracked.

Rei swung wildly as failed experiment after failed experiment was thrown onto the cold floor, either dead or unconscious. There was no mercy in the swordsman's golden black gaze as she caved in a deranged man's chest, leaving him gurgling in his own blood.

Sweat poured down her skin mingling with her own blood. She was littered with cuts and gashes, some small other extensive and in need of treatment, but Rei wouldn't stop. She had to clean-up.

—There was no stopping until the floor itself couldn't be seen because of the bodies.

"You really should stop, Commander." The blonde ninja spoke from the small balcony overlooking the pit. "You've been going at it for over five days. You're going to pass out soon."

"No. I have to do this."

Rei spat blood as she panted heavily. She could barely see straight, one of her arms was out of function, she had a limp to her leg and one of her ears was bitten off—all in all, her body was close to shutting down. But this didn't stop Rei from fighting. Although sloppy, she could still lop off heads with just one swipe of her inhuman hand.

"There's no rejects left anymore." The man sighed exasperatedly. "You killed them _all_."

Rei glared at his high perch nastily. "Then I'll just create a clone and bash its skull repeatedly!"

"Why are you doing _this_?"

A somber air fell over the swordsman as she ripped her gaze from the shinobi above and looked at her bloodied and bruised hands.

"Because I failed _again_."

She had lost control of herself and beaten the boy bloody. Not that he didn't deserve it, but now that she calmed down she realized that she had taken it too far. And Rei knew that if her team hadn't been there, she would have killed him and signed her death warrant at the same time.

So, to clear her tumultuous heart and mind, she locked herself inside the pit and trained until she could barely move her muscles anymore. After she was thoroughly exhausted, she set free the rejects and let them fight her tooth and nail. This way the rejects had chances to actually wound her.

—This was Rei's self-punishment.

"I'm supposed to be the best. To be that, I have to be in control. Not some crazed animal, slobbering over itself. Why?" Her lax fingers curled into tight fists. "Why can't I do it? Why can't I control myself?!"

With an inhuman roar, Rei punched the ground strong enough that the stone gave away forming a small crater with many fissures leading away from it. With a look of disgust, she realized that her arm had awakened in unison with her anger.

There really couldn't be one without the other…

"How many times do I have to endure this shit?" She looked at her talons and even the slightest movement had the obsidian claws shine ominously. "I hate this. This monster inside me."

A scoff came from above.

"Self-pity doesn't suit you, Commander."

Rei contorted her features nastily. "If this makes you uncomfortable, then piss off! I don't need you blabbing in my ear like a mother hen!"

"When have I ever?" The man crossed him arms leisurely. "I'm simply looking out for your health. You _are_ my superior, after all."

Intoxicating conceit put a pause to the girl's foreboding thoughts and stifling anger. A domineering brow rose and the girl placed her clawed hands on her hips.

"You know, Heisuke, a true Oto shinobi would wait until I had no more energy left and then slit my throat. You on the other hand, don't, which makes me wonder if you're actually, _truly_ loyal to Orochimaru or just an idiot." She smirked spitefully. "But then again—"

"I'm loyal to you."

"—a lot of—" The pompous air left her quicker than a punctured balloon. "What?"

Heisuke smirked at the girl's dumbfounded expression. "I'm loyal to _you_ , not Orochimaru-sama."

"…What are you talking about?"

"Man, you really are thick-headed sometimes." The blonde sighed before jumping over the railing and nimbly landing on the stones like a cat. He rose to his full height which was a head taller than the girl standing in front of him and approached her with calculated steps. "Rei, I've been by your side for over four years. I've lost count of how many times we've had each other's back. I put more trust in that than fighting for a man I've only talked to four times in my life and who, might I add, has no qualms in using me as an experiment subject if that's his fancy." He stopped a breath away from her. "I follow you and no one else."

He leaned closer until his cheek touched hers and thin lips ghosted over her ear.

"I would kill _anyone_ for you."

Pause.

A russet hand lay flat over his broad chest and pushed. Heisuke showed no resistance as he let himself take a step back. There was a peculiar look about her, a mix between suspicion and thinly veiled dread.

"Oi, watch what you say." Her tone was as flat as it was harsh. "If _he_ hears this sort of talk, he won't go easy on you. There are ears everywhere in his bases."

"I'm aware, but I wanted you to know."

Rei raked her fingers through her damp snow white hair, leaving trails of crimson and specks of dirt. She couldn't understand what possessed her second to just proclaim something of this nature. She felt flattered, there was no doubt to that. Who didn't want a loyal underling? But there was something nagging at her, something that told her there was more to his words than what he said.

"Why now?" She eyed him shrewdly.

"Felt like it." He shrugged, a faint smirk adorning his lips.

A light-bulb then went on in Rei's brain and she grimaced.

The idea was—

"Are you professing some kind of secret _love_ for me?" She scoffed unamused. "That would be ridiculous and inappropriate considering our ranks and age difference. I don't go for old men."

"Old?! You think I'm old?" His eyes widened in disbelief. "I'm twenty-five!"

"That's old for me." The swordsman crossed her arms audaciously. "You're practically a decade older."

The man shook his head in stinted amusement before sharply eyeing the girl. "And what if I did harbor more than just camaraderie for you?"

"I…" Rei faltered. All of this had been a joke for her. She didn't actually believed Heisuke would like her in _that_ way. But if he even thought of it—"I would tell you to go fuck some whores and get it out of your system, because you got no chance with me. I don't _need_ anyone." The shadows underneath her eyes darkened, making her pale eyes stand out like diamonds in the near dark. "Love is a weakness that'll get you killed and I like living too much."

The sniobi snorted. "I wouldn't go so far as love. Hell, I don't even know how that feels like. But…"

Shinji stepped closer and closer to Rei, despite the hostile aura she was emanating, breaking her personal space once again. He lowered his upper body so he was eye level with her. The fact that she poised her talons in a threatening manner didn't escape his notice and Heisuke felt a shiver crawl between his shoulders. This was a gamble to him as he knew how his Commander reacted to events. This could either end well for him or _very_ bad—as in those talons ripping through his stomach bad.

This close he could smell her scent—a mix between blood, dirt, sweat, metal and chemicals. It was sharp and he was not a fan of it, but knowing who the one carrying it was, he made an exception.

His hand slowly reached towards her cheek and touched it gently. There was a minute twitch in the corner of Rei's eye and he could sense the disturbance in her chakra, but she didn't step away from him. His fingers trailed her russet skin and he could feel the barely noticeable indents left by old battle wounds. They criss-crossed over her face and no doubt she had more visible ones underneath her clothes, larger and much deeper.

Rei said nothing as he studied her face. She simply followed his movements with narrowed eyes, almost as if waiting for an attack. But Heisuke held no thoughts on striking her, quite the opposite in fact. He just wanted to feel her skin without the risk of bodily harm and, surprisingly, she was letting him.

His palm cupped her cheek and he leaned in closer.

"But I would have no qualms in kissing you."

Rei's eyes widened. There is anticipation and something akin to barely suppressed panic in those icy cerulean eyes.

"Have you ever had someone kiss you?" Heisuke asked softly as his thumb caressed her bottom lip.

"No." There was a slight waiver to her answer and the man had been sharp enough to pick up on it. Rei was lowering her guard.

He smiled roguishly. "Do you want to?"

"I…You…"

Rei paused before blinking once, twice and whatever astonishment she had shattered into a thousand pieces as her face turned to stone. Her still working hand struck like lightning and gripped Heisuke's wrist harshly. The man winched as he could feel his bone seconds away from caving in under the pressure.

"Leave. Now." She spat with fire in her wild gaze. "That's an _order_."

Heisuke's impish smirk never diminished as he took several steps back. He could still feel the pain in his wrist but he wasn't about to complain. He had achieved what he wanted and got a bit of insight on this whole matter.

"Of course, Commander."

Heisuke Shunshin-ed out of sight and Rei finally let the breath she had been holding out.

She sank to her knees, her legs unable to hold her up anymore. The swordsman was glad the blonde had finally left her presence, not only because he had managed to disturb her, but because she had been seconds away from collapsing and she hadn't wanted to do it in front of him. She wouldn't give him any more reasons to touch her.

 _Heisuke, you bastard! How long have you been thinking like this?_

Rei rubbed her blazing cheeks with her now human hand. Her whole body was aflame as she could still feel Heisuke's touch ghosting over her skin. She didn't like this feeling. It was too raw and new and she had no defense against it. The swordsman had never played with the thought that someone might actually be attracted to her. Hell, she never even intended to ever get involved with anyone. There were more pressing matters in life than something as useless as love. But Heisuke…

He _wanted_ her. Physically or emotionally or maybe both.

 _But why?_

It wasn't like Rei was a charming person or someone you could bring home to your parents, far from it. She was what people saw, no more, no less. Sure, she had some skeletons in her closet, but nothing incriminating, just some unresolved issues from the past.

Maybe it was her strength. People were usually drawn to power and what better way to subjugate someone stronger than you than through the heart, especially if they were of the opposite sex. A pathetic way, but Rei had seen what peril emotions of the romantic kind could cause.

Was this what Heisuke was after? To weaken her, to turn her into his toy? Or maybe his intentions were actually true?

Rei scoffed.

Nothing is _that_ innocent in Otogakure.

* * *

Orochimaru looked through the observation window on Sasuke's progress. He sighed as he remembered the complete evaluation of the boy's injuries the medic gave him a few days ago. Their training would be put on hold for the time being, all thanks to his unruly pupil.

The man sighed. What was he going to do with her?

She couldn't keep doing this. Killing or maiming his shinobi every time she spiraled into a temper tantrum! There had to be something to calm the beast inside her short of destroying her identity. He had a contingency plan—one that would kill the person called Rei and leave a mannequin with strings attached to his fingers instead. But he was reluctant to use it. His pupil was more useful to him as she was, however untamed. Besides, he had invested too many years and too much sweat and blood in shaping her just to destroy her.

Light steps approached and stopped next to him. Orochimaru didn't have to turn to see who it was, he knew as soon as he heard the pattern.

"How is he?"

Rei's face appeared in the reflection of the glass as she stared at the Uchiha heir being poked and prodded by the female medic. The Sannin looked sideways and gazed upon the unblemished skin of her face. After her little episode in the pits, she had locked herself in her chamber for over a day, refusing medical help. Orochimaru had to check on her himself to see if she hadn't died in her sleep. Like he didn't have better things to do with his time.

But once he saw the girl he knew she would be alright. He then assured the female medic that Rei just needed time and dissuaded her from entering the room lest she got injured. Rei's temper was always at its lowest when she was weak.

—And it seemed he was right because here she stood, no sign of injury on her.

"He'll live."

Rei crossed her arms as she huffed. "I know that, but how long will it take for him to get healthy?"

"Why?" Orochimaru's eyes narrowed condescendingly. "Do you wish to use him as a punching bag again?"

The girl turned her head away, no doubt scowling unpleasantly.

Orochimaru breathed in deeply to calm his agitated nerves. It was amazing how sometimes the mere sight of her could provoke such urges out of him. There had been only one person capable of such a feat a long time ago…a different life ago.

"Two-three weeks. I have the best medics working on his recovery." Orochimaru responded as he gave the boy one last look before stepping away from the window. "Come."

Like the good little soldier, Rei followed without pause. Teacher and student walked the darkened halls at a leisured pace.

"I have several missions lined up for you." He then eyed her coldly. "And you don't get to refuse them."

Rei's shoulders slumped as her muscles internally groaned. She knew what he was doing—punishing her via a shitload of missions one after the other until her whole body collapsed. And even then she was expected to crawl her way into the next one. The Oto swordsman had hoped that he would forget the whole ordeal and put it behind them, but Orochimaru had a long memory and mercy was not within his emotional range.

"What if I apologize nicely?" She gave him a large smile, her jaw hurting from the strain.

Orochimaru scoffed.

Rei dropped the smile and placed her sunglasses back over her eyes.

 _It was a long shot anyway…_

* * *

 _ **Foot Note:**_ I based Rei's mutation on Alex Mercer from Prototype. He was pretty much the inspiration. Of course she's not as god-like powerful as he is, but I hope you get the gist of it.

Why did I make Rei this way? Because I thought it would be a change from just having a powerful kekkei genkai like many OC's do. That _was_ my initial plan, but then I thought—Rei is Orochimaru's student, so that means the Sannin would experiment on her just like he did on Jugo, Suigetsu, Kimimaro etc. So, why not play with that? Rei is a product of Orochimaru's careful grooming as his number one ninja, so it would be logical for him to make her as powerful as possible.

Besides, this gives their relationship a much deeper nuance.

At least that's how I think…


	7. Follow the Bloodied Brick Road

_**River Country – Five years ago**_

 _A small child in tattered and dirtied clothing was sitting near the edge of a precipice on a large stone plateau. The entire of the cliff's edge was covered in plateaus and thick vines that dangled over the border. Below the child was a hundred meter drop and tall trees as far as the eye could see. Thin river veins were the only thing that separated the vast tropical forest and gave it some diversity._

 _If one looked at from a distance, they would think it was a boy judging by the mop of dark brown hair that almost hid the entire of their face, but on a closer inspection, the child was in fact a_ girl _._

 _Even from this height, Rei could see the clear blue water and hear the harmonious song of animals and birds native to the forest._

 _Behind her, a short distance away was an old mansion made of stone. It had been abandoned so many years ago that the vegetation ran rampant over the walls, covering them in a thick green blanket. But there had been a change recently—the mansion had come into ownership of a certain organization and that was why Rei sat so freely on its grounds._

 _Except for Orochimaru and Sasori and probably Zetsu (you never knew where the spy could be, he was seemingly everywhere and nowhere), nobody else was around. Oh, the Uchiha._

 _He had become a member just three months ago and already Orochimaru was buzzing with excitement. Something about his kekkei genkai, Rei didn't really know since she tuned her sensei out once he got too technical._

 _She hadn't seen him yet, the man preferring to stay in his chambers that talk to his colleagues. A quality everyone in Akatsuki seemed to share._

Hermits, all of them.

 _Rei poked her limp arm again and bit her lip till blood pooled. Even the slightest move had her wanting to screech in pain. If she had known her early morning spar would have ended like this then she would have just stayed in bed._

 _A crunch of sandals had her freeze._

 _Someone was coming down the gravel road._

 _Rei wasted no time in flattening herself on the ground. Good thing that the plateaus were all uneven, so if anyone wanted to hide, they could just crouch behind a higher plateau._

 _The girl watched as a short shinobi dressed in black and crimson stepped closer to the edge and sat on a large boulder. He seemed oblivious to the world around him as he gazed at the descending sun, but Rei knew better. These shinobi were_ always _vigilante._

 _She needed to get the hell out of here. Rei didn't know how this one would react to her watching him._

 _With slow movements, the girl backed away crab like._

" _I know you're there."_

 _Rei stopped and cringed._

Shit!

 _Her heart thrashed like crazy as she peeked over the top of the plateau. The shinobi hadn't moved one inch, but he was staring at her from the corner of his eye._

 _A bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face as she rose to her feet. Every muscle of her body was shaking with fear. Orochimaru wasn't here to protect her in case this ninja attacked and she wasn't strong enough to kill him, maybe not even scratch him._

 _So, Rei did the only thing possible._

" _Umm…Sorry!" She bowed low, hoping he wouldn't take offense to her presence. "I wasn't spying on you! I swear!"_

 _Silence on his end._

 _Then Rei heard the rustle of his cloak._

" _Look at me."_

 _Pale blue eyes rested on the figure that was now fully facing her and she blinked._

The fuck? It's a kid.

 _Maybe a year or two older than her, but still a kid._

" _Oi, dickhead!" Rei scrunched up her nose as she lost the fear and replaced it with annoyance. "You shouldn't wear their cloaks! Sasori-sama and Orochimaru-sama will skin you alive if they catch you!"_

 _The boy blinked without even a flinch on his pretty face._

" _Where did you come from?" His tone matched the blank expression on his face reminding Rei of Sasori's lifeless puppets._

Did he just ignore my question?

" _I'm the one asking here!" Rei pointed snidely at him. She'll kick his ass if he thinks he's better than her! "Who's apprentice are you? I know you're not Sasori's, so that means you're the Uchiha's."_

" _Apprentice…" The word rolled around the boy's tongue before he shook his head slowly. "I'm no one's apprentice."_

" _Well, you sure as shit ain't one of_ them _. You're what, twelve?" Rei scoffed disbelieving. "So, who are you then?"_

" _Uchiha Itachi."_

 _Rei paused. Something was not right here. He was too calm and too definite to be lying. Her eyes wandered over him, from top to bottom._

 _Pretty face with noble features. Long raven hair tied in a low ponytail. Dark slanted eyes that made him look rather girly. The Akatsuki cloak. And…_

 _The boy watched as the foul-mouthed girl's face paled considerably as her eyes landed on his Akatsuki ring._

 _Rei could feel her stomach clench in nausea as she took a heavy step backwards. She just made the biggest mistake of her life that will probably cost her everything and sensei wasn't here to save her._

" _I—I didn't know it was you, Uchiha-sama." Rei took another step back, unfathomable terror rattling her core. "I'm r-really sorry. I s-shouldn't have called y-you that. I'll—I'll just go."_

 _With slow movements, Rei turned and paced herself. She desperately wanted to run, to get away from the black plague behind her and right now she was showing her back to him. The girl just hoped that if he indeed attacked her, he would make it quick._

" _Stop."_

 _Swallowing back a sob, Rei followed the boy—man's command._

" _Come back."_

 _Turning on her heel, Rei reluctantly approached the Akatsuki member. With each step, she felt more and more of her resolve to not cry wither away. She didn't want to die._

 _Rei stopped just a foot away from him and she could feel the tears pooling at her lower eyelids. She hated the fact that he had to see her so wrecked with fear._

" _Who are you?" Uchiha asked as he stared at the girl calculatingly. He was really curious as to why there was a child within the ranks. She knew Orochimaru and Sasori so that made her privy to their organization, so he ruled her out as being a vagabond. But she did ask him if he was an apprentice…Was she one?_

" _My name's Rei." Her teeth clattered so strongly that she could actually hear them. "I'm Orochimaru-sama's apprentice."_

" _I wasn't aware he had one." The Uchiha couldn't really imagine the man having one this young or one at all._

 _The soft way he spoke, the time he took in phrasing his sentences…it just drove Rei mad. "If you're gonna beat me or kill me, just do it! I'm not gonna beg."_

 _No matter how scared she was, she was still the student of one of the strongest shinobi living. She will not grovel or beg. Rei will uphold his name._

 _Her outburst seemed to breathe some life into him as confusion narrowed his eyes. "Why would I kill you?"_

" _Because you're one of_ them _."_

 _That alone said everything._

 _Rei heard the silent breath that passed the Uchiha's lips. He then looked her straight in the eye and that same apathy was once again present._

 _The girl decided that she hated it. She'd rather him be angry, do something, show a little bit of emotion any other than this eerie deadness._

" _I won't hurt you." He spoke softly. "You didn't know."_

 _Rei was torn between believing him or not. Maybe this was a trap or maybe he was just toying with her. She wouldn't put it past them. But for the time being Rei will trust him as her eyes will watch his hands for any sudden movements._

 _The Uchiha's gaze landed back on her arm. He had seen the way it just lifelessly swayed and the girl kept reaching for it. Slowly as to not make her bolt, he raised his hand._

 _Rei grimaced as his fingers closed in on her limp arm. She steeled herself to the inevitable pain that would follow—_

 _As his fingers clasped on her flesh, a lightning bolt shot straight into her brain making her see multicolored spots._

 _The Uchiha saw the immediate change—her breath stopped, her pulse quickened, her eyes were on the verge of rolling back into her head as her muscles spasmed._

 _He let go immediately._

 _Once she regained her bearings, Itachi rose to his feet. The shinobi was just a few inches taller than her, but Rei still felt like he was towering over her._

" _What happened to your arm?" It was either broken or dislodged judging by the slightly unnatural position of it._

 _Rei took a step back from him, cursing him in her mind all the way._ It hurts!

 _As soon as the waves of pain subsided, Rei wiped the sweat from her forehead and glared at the man from underneath her lashes._

" _It's from training." Rei said from between gritted teeth. "Sensei was angry about something this morning, so he took it out on our spar. I don't know if it's broken or not and the doctor lady's not here to check it."_

— _Rei really wished she could see her more often. She was the only nice person in this messed up group._

 _Uchiha knew the reason for the Sannin's anger._ He _had been it as the two of them had a rather heated discussion this morning. Otochimaru had gotten too close with his questions concerning his kekkei genkai and Itachi had been rather adamant on what he'll do if the Sannin persisted._

 _The man hadn't taken it lightly, it seemed._

" _Come here."_

 _Rei really doesn't want to, not after he just squeezed her arm to death (he just touched it, but to her mind he did the unthinkable!), but she couldn't just refuse him. He was a full-fledged member. To do so might just result in her untimely death._

 _The girl approached him until she was just a breath away. She wouldn't look him in the eye, though. Anywhere else, but not his eyes. They_ scared _her._

 _His hands got to work as he carefully prodded her entire arm. He was searching for the fracture or the place where her arm was broken._

 _Rei winced and again bit the place on her lip where she had earlier, drawing blood from the freshly crusted scar. What the hell was he doing? Torturing her?_

 _As his hand reached her shoulder, it was there that Rei yelped._

 _Itachi tenderly massaged the area—her shoulder was dislocated._

" _Sir, what are you doing?" Rei's eyes widened as the Uchiha grabbed a hold of her upper arm and his free hand steadied her shoulder._

" _Hold still."_

Eh?

Is he gonna—

 _Pop._

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!

 _Nothing came out of her. Not a scream or a yelp, she just stood frozen with her mouth wide open and her eyes almost popping out of her skull._

 _The pain had been fast but most definitely excruciating. A tear slipped from her eye._

 _From Ameterasu to Vishnu she cursed every god in between and especially the bastard that gave life to this son of a bitch that just mauled her arm!_

 _Rei took back her abused arm and wiped the tear from her face, all the while giving the Uchiha a barely suppressed evil eye._

" _Warn me next time." Rei croaked shrilly._

 _The Uchiha settled back on his boulder, his knee bent while his arm rested on it. He watched the girl steadily as she struggled to keep her wits to herself._

" _You should be more careful with the Snake Sannin otherwise you might find yourself in an early grave."_

 _Rei sniffed as she shook her head determinedly. She knew that some of the members didn't exactly get along (_ they were all guys with too much ego _), some even joked on the fact that she was still alive every time they saw her. But they never once warned her of the risks her sensei posed. So why was he?_

" _Sensei wouldn't kill me." I jutted my chin proudly. "He says I have_ value _."_

 _The Uchiha lightly scoffed. "Only as much as you're of use to him."_

 _That made the girl act without thinking._

" _What the hell do you know?!"_

 _She wasn't just some_ skinny _on his operation table, she wasn't one of his peons. If she had been, sensei wouldn't have kept her alive. He wouldn't have trained her. She was_ special _, he said so himself. She was his student._

— _She was_ better _than most._

 _But what the former Uchiha heir saw was someone trying to place some worth on their small lives. Not everybody in this world had one and some desperately tried to carve one themselves no matter the cost. Too bad that the girl found her worth in serving someone as vile as Orochimaru._

" _My apologizes." Itachi said softly. "I do not know your situation."_

 _Rei stepped back from him, feeling thoroughly upset. There was a bitter taste in her mouth and right now she just wanted to be away from the Uchiha and lick her wounds._

" _So, if you're not gonna hurt me, can I go?"_

 _The young Akatsuki member didn't even blink. "I'm not stopping you."_

 _Rei waited for no further encouragement and ran as fast as her legs could take her. She made the mistake of looking back once—_

— _The Uchiha's dark gaze was still fixated on her and she could have sworn she saw a red glimmer in his eyes._

* * *

Rei blew the lock of white hair away from her face. She was resting on a thick branch of a rather large tree overlooking a wide open space serving as one of the exterior training grounds.

Orochimaru was training the Uchiha brat. They have been going at it since sunrise and after six months in Sound he had improved considerably.

Rei sighed. _Six months…_

It felt like a year had passed since the boy came to their village. As per Orochimaru's instructions, she stayed out of the Uchiha's way. She didn't talk to him, she had little to no contact with him. Suited her just fine since she was constantly busy with Otokagure's ninja business. Just last week, Rei had to deal with a clash between Oto shinobi and Snow Black Ops. Getting rid of the bodies hadn't been that hard. Just a little bit of sodium hydroxide, some plastic barrels and the Snow ninjas _must_ have disappeared during one of Snow's famous blizzards.

Konohagakure had been silent since Sasuke left them. They hadn't even tried sending any of their shinobi to recuperate the boy. It was almost _too_ quiet. Kabuto's spies in Konoha had informed them that the Jinchuriki had left the village with the Toad Sannin, but other than that nothing was out of the ordinary.

The tail they had on the Akatsuki pair that had infiltrated the village after their attack had disappeared without a trace. Rei knew that it had been a long shot trying to spy on them. The older Uchiha brother was nothing more than meticulously efficient.

The Oto girl had desperately wished that she could have intervened the moment Itachi used his Sharingan on Sasuke. Not to save him, but because in that moment he had been distracted and, maybe _(big maybe)_ , she could have had the chance to kill him.

It would have happened like this—

 _Surprise!_

Swish. Cut.

Blood fountain.

Head rolling.

 _Ta-da!_

No more Itachi.

Rei grinned. _Sensei would have been proud._

But her task had been keeping her eyes on the younger Uchiha at all times, so she couldn't just go gallivanting after Itachi.

"Enough."

Rei's attention came back to the pair in the field. Orochimaru had halted their spar.

"We'll continue later. For now, go inside and have the medics check your wounds." The Sannin dusted the dirt off his clothes.

The boy wasted no time and Shunshin-ed away.

"Aren't you supposed to be attending your duties, Rei?" The Sannin didn't even pause as he untangled a twig from his long hair.

Rei internally groaned. _Goddammit…_

Slipping off the branch, she landed nimbly on her toes before leisurely joining her sensei.

"Finished them a while ago. Got bored, so I decided to run a bit." Rei stopped a short distance from him, pushing the sunglasses over her forehead and crossing her arms in an annoyed fashion. "How do you always know where I am? I was using those chakra suppressors you created."

The man smiled slyly. "Oh, my dear, I shaped you. I know every move and every _inch_ of your body."

Rei gave the man a faux disturbed look. "That's kind of creepy, sensei. Is there something I should know about?"

Orochimaru huffed knowing that his pupil was once again implying he was a pervert. Why she always did that, short of her amusement, was unknown to him.

"He's getting better."

"Yes, but not quick enough." There was a sour undertone to the Sannin's voice. He wasn't pleased.

"It's been only six months." Rei waved her hand dismissively. "There's still time."

The Sannin eyed her shrewdly. "You progressed much faster."

"That's because I'm _special_." The girl smiled toothily.

A languid blink.

" _Indeed_ …" A finger crooked as he motioned for her to follow. "I want to send him on a mission."

"So soon?"

"Yes, he needs to strengthen his emotional base." Orochimaru clasped his hands behind his back and straightened his spine.

"If you say so." Rei shrugged indifferently. She didn't really care what her sensei did with the brat. "Where do you want him to go? I already gave out all the missions we had. I guess I could stick him with one of the special teams—"

"No." He cut her off. "I want him to go to Earth Country."

Rei froze mid-step. The cogs were moving.

 _But I'm going to Ear—_

"Hell no!"

"It's not up to discussion."

"But sensei!" Rei shuffled right up in her sensei's path, moving backwards as he did forward. "I can handle it alone. I don't need—"

"I wasn't implying you can't complete it solo." The man gave her a pointed look. "It is the matter of the boy's mental progress. I believe he's advancing so slowly because he still holds to his morals. I want him to see what it takes to achieve a goal. The viciousness of it." Viper eyes gleamed with thinly veiled malice. "If he can go through the Earth mission, I believe he will start getting stronger faster."

"He'll get in my way!" He couldn't be serious, sticking the brat with her. Not after what history they had. Rei was pretty sure that the Uchiha hadn't forgiven her for the beat-down. If he ever will.

"Make sure that he doesn't." That was a threat directed at her. "I _do_ want the success of this mission and him brought back in one piece."

The girl spat unpleasantly, her glare scathing. "What makes you think that he'll even want to? You remember what I did to him, right?"

"As long as he is under my wing, he will listen to what I say." He was stronger than the boy, much stronger. But if he continued to refuse, Orochimaru was no stranger to beating people into submission. Nobody got to say 'no' to him.

Rei got out of his way as she realized the losing battle she was fighting. She stopped following as she could already envision the pain in the ass this mission will be.

"What if I fail because of him?"

Orochimaru didn't even stop as he neared the entrance to his main base.

"Then why did I put you in charge of my shinobi?"

Rei bit her lip harshly.

* * *

Sasuke toweled his hair as he stepped out of his steaming bathroom. Today had been uneventful, just like every other day for the past couple of months and he was starting to get impatient. The Sannin wasn't delivering his end of the deal fast enough and thoughts of leaving were becoming more frequent.

The Uchiha's eyes adjusted to his more dim-lighted room and a shiver crawled down his spine.

 _What the hell is_ she _doing here?_

Rei was sitting in _his_ armchair, her ankle over her knee and her chin propped up on the heel of her palm—the picture of nonchalance. But there was something wrong as her lips were tightly pressed and he could just feel her glare from behind her dark sunglasses.

"What are you doing here?" Sasuke's tone was below zero degrees. Just the mere sight of her had him wanting to punch her.

"Not staring at your hairless ass, that's for sure." She sneered before straightening her back. "Orochimaru's got a mission for you."

"Why send you?" He felt exposed like this. The only clothes he had was a towel around his hips and one around his shoulders and the nearest weapon he could reach was a pen.

"Because that mission was initially mine."

He couldn't stop himself. Even if he had wanted to, he wouldn't have stopped the derisive smirk. "So he replaced you with me?"

"No, brat." His arrogance had the desired effect as the girl snarled. "We're gonna do this mission _together_."

He didn't even think it over.

"No."

Sasuke walked over to his wardrobe and picked up a batch of fresh clothing.

"That's what I said, but sensei is not up to hearing arguments, so we're gonna do as he wants." The swordsman rose to her feet and swiped her bangs out of her sight.

"I said no." Now Sasuke openly glared. "Not with _you_."

The girl smirked with corpse like coldness. "Believe me, you're the last person I want to end up stuck with for what will probably be two weeks, but an order is an order." She took a step closer making Sasuke drop into a defensive pose. He will fight her half-naked if he had to, however mortifying that was. "You _will_ go on this mission even if I have to drag you by your funny looking hair. Get your shit packed and get plenty of rest. We're heading out before sunrise."

Sasuke threw his black shirt on the cold ground in anger. He could feel his Seal itching to come out and wreak havoc. "Where is he? I'll talk to him—"

"Waste of time." The girl scoffed. "Whatever you say will just go through one ear and out the other. _That_ if he even notices you're there." Without further ado, she turned on her heel and headed for the exit. "I'll meet you up at the western base exit and explain our mission on the way."

Before closing the door behind her, the girl's sunglasses gleamed as they fixated on him. Sasuke didn't even need to see her whole face to know there was a death stare pointed on him. Even the air around him coiled up like a snake ready to strike.

"Don't make me come back for you."

With a bang she closed the door and Sasuke cursed foully. What the hell was the Sannin thinking sending him with her? Did he really want another fight again because he just knew the girl will start one again. She was an uncontrollable beast, after all.

These past few months had been simple. He woke up, spared with Orochimaru, ate, studied scrolls and then slept. It was his daily routine that kept him from losing his mind in this oppressing place. The ninja here did not interact often with him in fear of the Sannin and those that tried to pick a fight with him, either out of ignorance or bravado, disappeared for a few days before resurfacing scared shitless of even looking at him.

The Sannin wanted him isolated from the rest. Only he, Kabuto, the female medic, and Rei ever spoke to him. It was starting to make him feel claustrophobic.

But despite the seclusion he was feeling, he would rather have the company of a rock than Rei. She was a bitch and he could still remember the painful state she had left him in. He had barely even seen the white-haired swordsman these months. Only a glimpse here and there, or from a distance. And he was fine with that. He certainly didn't want to be anywhere near her craziness again.

He needed to find Orochimaru and change his mind. No fucking way was he going _anywhere_ with her.

* * *

Rei was leaning against the wall of the stairs that led outside the base, her arms crossed. There is a burning cigarette dangling between her fingers and an expression on contempt on her face.

The brat was ten minutes late.

"He's late."

Rei glared at blonde shinobi sitting on the stairs with his arms reclined over the higher steps. Heisuke was keeping his Commander company as he would _hate_ for her to be bored.

"Don't glare at me." He smirked. "I'm not the one that stuck you with him."

"Why the hell is sensei sending him with me?" Rei kicked a pebble away as she glowered at nothing. "Can you answer that?"

"I'm not even gonna try to understand." The shinobi leaned over his bent knees, the smirk taking on a whimsical touch. "Orochimaru-sama's mind is a mystery even to me."

"Well, you're useless." Rei huffed.

The man chuckled throatily. "Just _try_ not to kill him, Commander."

"I'm not stupid. I'm not risking another repeat of last time. I barely survived those missions and maybe this time, he'll send me to the prisons." She took a drag out of her cigarette as her chin rose haughty. "No, I'm gonna be calm. Feng Shui calm."

Heisuke looked unconvinced which just irritated the white one.

"What, you think I can't?" Her eyes narrowed to slits.

The man held up his hands in peace. "I never said that, but considering your history…It's a bit hard to swallow."

"Aren't you the insubordinate little bastard?" She threw her cigarette before stepping close enough that she was in front of him, glaring down like a pissed off wildcat.

Her ignorance would cost her.

Heisuke's hands landed on the back of her knees.

Rei froze as her anger crumbled to dust.

Those long fingers traveled upwards _agonizingly_ slow feeling every muscle twitch underneath his pads. Heisuke's grin never broke as he kept staring at her. There was an indescribable elation at seeing someone like Rei blush like a schoolgirl.

Her breath lengthened as his fingers stopped right underneath her backside, his thumbs slowly tracing circles on her thighs.

"You like that, don't you?" His voice was barely a whisper. "My _insubordination_?"

 _Gasp._

Fingers slowly worked their way inwards until they touched her inner thighs, dangerously close to her most private area. Rei let out a quiet sigh as a light haze settled over, making her pupils dilate alarmingly. His finger rose and touched—

"Stop!" Rei caught his wrists, her chest heaving. She knew her whole face was beet red because she could feel her skin practically on fire.

"What?" Hesiuke smiled innocently like he had done nothing wrong. "Did I do something?"

"Not here where anyone can see." She hissed before wobbly taking a few steps away from him, his hands sliding away from her with each step until they parted with her warm flesh.

Some of Heisuke's smile diminished as once again Rei denied him. He was aware they were out in the open and the Uchiha or any other shinobi could walk in on them, but some part of him didn't care. Let them see and know that the girl was off limits. He was a territorial like that.

Heisuke settled back in a more languid position as he watched the Commander button up her coat in embarrassment. He sometimes wondered if the Sannin knew how easily it was to embarrass her when it came to more _tangible_ matters. He _really_ hoped not.

"How long will this mission take?" He was going to need a cold shower after this.

"A week and a half I think." Russet hands tried to wipe away the rosiness from her cheeks. "Two tops."

"When you come back, I was thinking we could head out to the nearby village for a few hours." Maroon eyes raked over her lithe body making the girl self-conscious. "Get that tension out of your muscles."

Rei glared at him suspiciously. She already knew what thoughts his mind conjured, but she still had to ask. "And how do you intend to do that?"

"I could think of something." The grin was back in place, only this time more seductive. "I have several ideas actually and not one of them is from the temple door."

Rei coughed in embarrassment. _Damn him!_ Heisuke just loved seeing her rattled. Half of her hated it when he came on to her since there were too many volatile emotions flying around which she had no idea how to deal with, but the other half felt excitement. Anticipation for his next move.

—It was tiring. He wanted something that she didn't know how to give, and so they just ran around in circles with Heisuke doing most of the chasing.

"We'll see." There was no thing as promises for someone like her. Her duties came first and who knew when something urgent would fall into her lap and disrupt her plans. Being Orochimaru's left hand didn't exactly give you free time.

"I'll take that over nothing." Heisuke sighed as he racked his fingers through his blonde hair.

"Don't pout." Rei crossed her arms, all traces of her embarrassment gone. "It's ugly on a guy."

He mockingly did just to annoy her.

The white-haired girl snorted before checking her pocket watch again. Five minutes had passed so it now made the Uchiha fifteen minutes late. That was the end of Rei's patience.

"I'll be right back."

Rei stomped back down the stairs and disappeared into the dark base. Black tendrils swirled over the whites of her eyes as the annoyance grew into anger.

"Feng Shui, Commander!"

Heisuke's yell was unheard as Rei stalked the corridors of Oto like a prowler. Reaching the Uchiha's chambers she found no trace of him, so she left for the one place that little brat would be.

Pushing open the double doors of Orochimaru's office, she found him standing in front of the man's wide study table exchanging heated words.

"Sasuke-kun, I understand you are upset, but—"

"What did I tell you about making me wait, Uchiha?" Rei exploded like a raging bull, approaching the scowling Uchiha and her bored sensei. "Was I speaking monkey to you? Because I can swear I wasn't!"

"Quiet, Rei." Orochimaru's pointed command had the girl press her lips tight. He waved them away as his attention returned back to his scrolls. "Both of you, go now. You have a long road ahead."

Sasuke tried to take a step around the desk and come face to face with Orochimaru, but Rei blocked his path. This time she didn't have her glasses on and he could see how abnormally dilated her pupils were. The murderous gleam in her ice blue eyes was the only thing that had him pause.

This wasn't the uncouth, white-haired swordsman he was looking at, but Orochimaru's top soldier. A ruthless killer with no mercy to spare.

They said nothing as they stared at each other. A silent duel.

Sasuke was the first to bow down as he realized that this wasn't the time to start a fight. He took a deep breath before turning on his heel and rigidly leaving the room.

Rei let the breath she had been holding out. Uncurling her tight fists, she looked behind her at the unperturbed Sannin.

"You sure about this?"

He didn't even look up as he answered without falter.

"Quite."

* * *

For hours they ran and only at sundown did they finally stop to make camp. They were at the border of Rice and Silk and they were going to rest for a few hours before picking up the pace again.

Neither had talked during the journey. There was nothing to discuss. They weren't friends or comrades, just two people forced to work together for another man's goal.

"We're gonna rest for four hours then be on our way." Rei threw her backpack on the forest floor and sat on an overgrown root. "I suggest you eat something and then rest. I don't want to stop again until we reach the coast."

 _The coast?_ Sasuke paused in rummaging through his bag. He eyed the girl with a critical eye as she thoughtlessly lit up a cigarette using the flames of the campfire.

"When are you going to tell me where we're going and what the hell Orochimaru wants?" She had said that she'll explain on the way, but the only thing she got from her was static.

Rei sighed in pleasure as she took a drag out of her cigarette.

"Earth Country. There's a trading town called Okun on the eastern coast. It's the biggest port city Earth has." Smoke billowed as Rei sat back on the root. "We're gonna pass through Silk and take a ship from its northern port to Okun. This is the easiest way and the safest. I don't want to have an encounter with Earth's border patrol since they usually kills first and asks questions later."

Those bastards' severe regime was notorious—unbending, unyielding and more than ready to die for their country. Preferably taking you along with them.

 _Boring lot._

"And what does Orochimaru want from a trading town?" The Sannin was no merchant.

"As I'm pretty sure you know all towns have elected leaders. Now, Okun is no different, _but_ …the mayor is just a façade. The _real_ leader is a shinobi clan." Rei smirked as smoke flew from her nostrils in inventive arcs. "They prefer operating from the shadows since they don't want their Daimyo's attention on them. But most importantly, this clan has an agreement with us. They're supposed to ship _certain_ products to Sound every month, but they've been slacking off as of recently. Orochimaru wants to know why."

This didn't seem like a mission fitted for him. This implicated negotiations and Sasuke wasn't exactly versed in that. And he very much doubted the girl in front of him was either. "And for that he's sending us?"

Rei shrugged. "It seems so."

The Uchiha scoffed as her drank water from his canteen. This was a waste of his time. He was a shinobi, not some councilor or diplomat. He could have been training right now, not wandering country to country like an idiot.

He settled against the jagged trunk of a tree and tried to get some rest. He might as well be fresh for this worthless mission.

His dark eyes wandered over to the swordsman. She didn't look any different—same piercings, same clothes, same hairstyle and same sunglasses. He had once asked Orochimaru on why the girl preferred to wear them even in darkness and the man's answer had been a smirk.

Frankly, he found them annoying. He usually preferred to look at people in the eye while he was talking to them.

Something was bothering him, though. There must be something more than a shopping list this shinobi clan was distributing to Orochimaru. After all these months, Sasuke came to the realization that the man _always_ had a sinister motive to everything he did.

"What are these products?"

Dark lenses shined ominously as the flames danced reflectively.

Seconds flew by, the only sounds in the small clearing coming from the burnt kindling. Sasuke narrowed his eyes harshly. Was she deaf? He asked her a question.

"Did you hea—"

"I heard you." Rei finally moved as she flung her now extinguished cigarette in the fire. "I just don't know if I should tell you."

Dark eyes narrowed even further. _What the hell was going on?_

Rei scratched the back of her head. She was torn between telling him the truth and keeping her task quiet. Since Sasuke came from a 'goody two-shoes' village, he might react strongly.

…Well, he was bound to find out anyway, so he might as well have his outburst here in the middle of a forest than out on a busy street.

Lighting up another cigarette, Rei told him.

"Orochimaru has a lot of projects and these projects need subjects to be tested on. He just can't start experimenting with his ninja since he doesn't know the effects the tests will have on them and he's rather stingy on losing shinobi."

A silence befell the small clearing.

Sasuke stared at her in growing horror. What she just said…

"…People." He swallowed thickly as the answer hit him like a sack of bricks leaving him numb. "They're shipping _people_ to you."

"Pretty much." Rei blew out an asymmetrical circle. Her words held little to no pity. "These _skinnies_ are the necessary sacrifice to ensure sensei's projects will be a success."

"And you're going to make sure that those poor bastards get to Sound." He connected the dots as he looked at Rei anew. He knew the girl's moral compass was skewed, but this was a whole other level of grisly. "Kami, you make me _sick_."

Rei scoffed as she smoked her cigarette.

"And you're the one who will help me." She smiled sharply. "Think on that before you judge me, brat."

Sasuke rose to his feet, incensed. "I'm not helping you do this!"

"Doesn't matter to me, either ways." The girl shrugged uncaringly. "Sensei said that you just tag along. He said nothing about you participating, so stick to the sidelines if you want. Just don't get in my way."

Technically, this was what the Sannin wanted. For Sasuke to get his hands dirty. But if there is one thing Orochimaru forgot, is that Rei couldn't force him. The choice was his—join the depravity or stay clean.

Rei wasn't a good person. She had, in the past, forced others to do either her or Orochimaru's bidding. But this was different—Sasuke wanted to get stronger to defeat his brother, but in order for him to do that he had to let go of his Konoha mentality. Friends were not the answer; they will never make you stronger. And neither was love or peace or whatever horseshit Konoha indoctrinated their younglings with these days.

Violence. Death. Apathy. Cruelty. Power.

That's what made you stronger, and he needed to realize that if he wanted to—

Her thoughts took a step back.

 _Wanted to what? Defeat Orochimaru? Her?_

She needed to stop that train of thought, right now. Sensei only wanted him stronger so when he transferred to him, Sasuke's body would be at least Jonin level apt.

"And if I try to stop you, what? Are you going to break my wrists again?" Sasuke countered, his Sharingan active with the tomoes predatorily spinning.

Rei's lips contorted into a snarl.

 _Feng Shui, Rei. Be cool._

She took a deep breath before reluctantly ignoring his question.

"Thought so." The young ninja scoffed derisively. Even he knew that if there was a repeat of last time, Orochimaru would kill her bloody. Taking another beating at her hands would be worth seeing her dead.

The boy settled back against the tree as he glowered at her over the fire.

"How the hell doesn't Earth know about this?" If this had happened in Fire, their village would have surely heard of it. Who knew how many years this had been going on.

Rei chuckled darkly.

"They don't care." Teeth flashed with animalistic delight. "Earth is a large country and half of its barren. All the important villages and towns are located in the south-eastern part where trade is possible. The villages scattered in the northern and western parts of Earth are small and some even secluded. Nobody bats an eye if a few peasants disappear since their population is large and their economy one of the poorest." Rei leaned back on the bark as her smile widened. "They just chalk it up to them either dying in the vast rocky wastelands or leaving to find a better life."

The Oto swordsman threw another cigarette bud in the fire. The smile vanished as a more pensive air seemed to settle over her.

"It's amazing how easy it is, really. You'd think a country would protect its people no matter what." She snorted disappointedly. "But, as always, a person's life is weighted by their birth and job. A shinobi will always outbalance a peasant in terms of value while a nobleman will outbalance a shinobi, and so on and so forth. Only the ones worth saving are kept alive—the strong, the rich, the important—the rest can die." If Rei had been a nobody then Orochimaru would have never even looked in her direction. "They don't matter because another peasant will take their place as their numbers far exceed ours."

She smirked listlessly at the boy, the fire's heat distorting it eerily as her glasses shimmered with the promise of despair.

"Pretty world we live in, ain't it?"

* * *

 _ **Foot Note:**_ For those of you confused, Silk is the country between Waterfall and Sound where Madara and Obito had their lair. It's not actually named like that since the manga never gave one, so I just invented it.

To be truthful, I agree with Rei's views. Naruto world, despite being all smiles and friends in the manga, is a rather ugly place to live in. Child soldiers, assassins, backstabbing, crazy people that want to take over the world via a moon, big ass chakra monsters. I actually feel sorry for the civilians who have to go through all that shit on a daily basis.

Since River Country is between Wind and Fire, I imagine it being tropical. I like to think of it as having India's climate and vegetation…Yes, I know that this piece of info is rather irrelevant, but I find joy in the little details.


	8. All Aboard for Okun

_**Author's Note:**_

To **Barty** – I can't really say Rei is a psycho. I never created her with the intention of being one, but I can see why you would think so. She can be quite vicious and nasty and excessively angry ( _Rawwr, Hulk smash!_ ). And as for Sasuke's betrayals…well, you'll just have to wait and read ;)

To **Blades of Fury** – I feel ya, bro/sis. I'm not even gonna begin with how many errors and inconsistencies the manga has, but my primary has always been the tendency to make it so damn child-safe. And no, I don't believe that a character dying and then being brought back via a jutsu consists as dark. That's just Shonen.

Enjoy!

* * *

 _ **River Country – Five years ago**_

 _Rei scratched relentlessly at the bandage around her right eye. She swore that if she scratched any further, she'll tear out her skin like a gopher dug holes in the ground, but she really couldn't help herself. After the operation, Orochimaru had told her that there were going to be some aftereffects, but Rei had thought they would be mild. She was actually tearing up like a leaky faucet from the pain right now._

 _It was sunset and Rei was once again back on the plateau. She had avoided this place for the past two days, knowing that the Uchiha had the tendency to spend his time here. But she had decided to be brave and venture out today. She liked the plateau, it had a great view of the valley below._

 _She hadn't said a word to sensei about her interaction with the Uchiha. The last thing Rei wanted was for Orochimaru to know she had any contact with him. He might just use her in whatever conniving scheme he devised to get the Uchiha's eyes and she wanted no part of that._

 _The eleven year old never killed anyone that wasn't a failed test subject that could barely move or scream for help. She's never even been in a real fight, so causing the Uchiha harm had her stomach squirm uneasily. The boy-man was an actual human being as opposed to a skinny._

 _Rei paused._

 _The slight breeze carried out a new scent in the air. The smell reminded her of earth, stones, musk and a hint of…rosemary?_

 _Looking around, she found the source in the form of the Uchiha, sitting on the same boulder as a few days ago._

 _A shiver crawled down the girl's spine as she knew there was no chance for her to hide or leave quietly. He probably had known she was there even before appearing._

" _Uchiha-sama." Rei saluted cordially._

" _Girl."_

 _He didn't even turn towards her or give her any other form of acknowledgement. For Rei that was good news since it meant that he had no reservations with her remaining on the plateau._

 _With her one good eye she kept it on the Uchiha (_ she trusted no one in this organization except for sensei _) while the other was being scratched to hell, but the bandage protected her eye from the wrath of her chipped nails._

" _What has he done now?"_

 _The fingers paused on the bandage as the Uchiha now had his turned towards her._

" _It's an experiment." Rei couldn't ignore him even if she wanted to. He was her superior. "Sensei says I'll be able to see better."_

 _The Akatsuki member silently scrutinized the girl—from her bandaged eye to the other. He scoffed lightly as he came to the realization._

" _And he only worked on one eye so if it does fail, at least you'll have the other."_

 _Rei glowered at him like she wanted to cut off his ponytail and parade it in front of him and if he had been a lowly apprentice like her, she would have done it gleefully._

" _But it's gonna work and then he'll do the other and I'll have the_ best _eyes in the world."_

 _Itachi's brows rose a fraction of an inch as he seriously doubted her proclamation. He detested gloating, but even he was aware that his kekkei genkai was among the finest pair of eyes solely on the attributes of his Sharingan._

" _You should learn to refuse his demands." Itachi said as he unbuttoned the neckline of his cloak so the breeze could cool down his damp skin. "You have no idea how quickly this could backfire and possibly cripple you for the rest of your life."_

" _Why should I?" Rei frowned. "I trust him with my life."_

" _You shouldn't." He couldn't stress that enough. "That man is not your friend."_

 _Like before he was attempting to alienate her from Orochimaru. She didn't know if he actually cared for her wellbeing or if he was going for a low blow—strike Orochimaru from a more subtle angle. She hated this sneaky subterfuge since Rei preferred straightforwardness and direct action._

 _Besides, she didn't need the Uchiha to tell her about her and sensei's standing. Kami knows, Orochimaru had shouted it far too many times, especially during the moments where he was at his angriest (_ mostly because of something she did or say _)._

" _He's not supposed to be my friend, he's my mentor." Rei sniffed as her fingers scratched at the edge of the bandage. "I have to listen to him since he's much smarter than me and probably even you."_

Oh…shit.

That wasn't supposed to come out.

 _Rei bit her lower lip as a tingling sensation of horror stung her fluttering heart. The Uchiha slowly turned to her, the dying sun reflecting an unnatural scarlet hue in those bottomless black pools._

 _There was a tangible danger in the air telling her that if she continued with that phrase, she'll end up in a very_ bad _place._

 _Lowering her head, she tried to make herself as small as possible to minimize the impact. She wondered if he'll go for her back or her head and braced herself for the kick or punch._

 _When nothing happened she peeked over at him, but the Uchiha was no longer staring at her. His attention seemed to be enamored by the sunset, all signs of turbulence gone._

What the hell is wrong with him? Why isn't he shouting or even glaring?

 _Any of the others would have slapped her for that comment alone, but he ignored her in favor of a freaking sunset. Rei was beginning to think he was the unpredictable psychopath her sensei told her he was. One moment he looked nice and statuesque, and in the other he transformed into a rabid oni, destroying everything in his path._

" _Why are you talking to me?" Rei looked at him again. "The other's never do."_

" _Why is that?" He asked without turning his eyes from the sight before him._

" _I only really know Sasori-sama and Zetsu-sama and they don't like me." That was little to say. "The only words I hear from them are 'shut up' or 'get lost'. That's why I stay out of the others way. I don't want a repeat of last time."_

 _Itachi's eyes switched to her intently._

" _Sasori almost killed me once." Rei winced as she remembered that particularly ugly memory. "I broke the hand on one of his puppets by accident and if it hadn't been for sensei, he would've snapped my neck."_

 _It didn't even matter that at that time she had been only eight years old. Just a small child curious about the man's dolls. Rei had never owned one so she had thought about playing with his without the 'Red Sand' knowing about it. Too bad it all backfired on her._

" _Sasori is not known for his patience or like of children." The Uchiha said dryly._

 _Rei pouted dejectedly as she was aware of it now. She just wished she had known at the time. It would have saved her from a couple of broken bones._

 _Her gaze returned to him. Uchiha Itachi seemed so calm compared to his contemporaries, but there was also something else. Something underneath that serenity that had Rei frowning. An almost tangible emotion that she couldn't put her finger on._

 _What did sensei tell her about him? He had some kekkei genkai, blah blah blah…and something about his family, but she couldn't remember what. She'll have to look through sensei's files when he was distracted by his experiments or the Leader._

" _How come your partner isn't with you?"_

Who was his partner anyway? That guy with the phosphorescent green eyes or was it the fish-man or maybe a new member?

" _Kisame was sent on an errand. I was told to wait for him here."_

Kisame? Oh, the shark-man.

 _The girl grimaced slightly. "Your partner's the Swordsman of the Mist."_

" _You don't like him." The Uchiha wasn't blind to her show of disgruntlement._

" _Not always." Kisame was probably the least cruel out of all of them, at least on the surface. He was the one always joking that she was still alive every time he saw her. "The only thing I like about him is that he has a sense of humor even if it's fucked up."_

" _You shouldn't use such foul words."_

 _Rei scrunched up her nose. Sensei kept telling her that as ever time she used obscenities he likened her to an uncouth monkey. "Almost everyone here does. Where do you think I learned them?"_

" _That doesn't mean you have to."_

" _I like it." Rei smirked bashfully._

" _It's juvenile and vulgar." The Uchiha deadpanned making the girl pout again._

 _Suddenly, the young man frowned as he tilted his head. Just as Rei was about to ask, he nodded towards her face._

" _You're bleeding."_

 _Rei touched her face and came upon a wet patch right underneath her bandage. Her scratching must have broken through the skin._

" _Shit. I have to go and take care of this." The girl wiped the blood on her shirt. There was a first aid kit somewhere in Orochimaru's chambers._

 _Rising to her feet, Rei dusted the earth off her pants and looked at the Uchiha from between the locks of her dark mop of hair._

 _Her heart beat rapidly in her chest._

" _Uchiha-sama, how long are you staying at this base?" She played with the hem of her shirt, trying to seem as indifferent as possible and failing._

 _The Uchiha looked at the girl's actions and almost smiled on the inside. He's seen girls the same age as her act so flustered, but the only difference was that it looked out of place with her._

" _Until my partner arrives."_

" _Can I…Can I talk to you again?" Rei mumbled as her cheeks burned. "I'm not really interested in sensei's experiments. They get boring after a while and he gets all scientific which I don't really understand, and the lady doctor is not here. I'm not gonna pester you and you can tell me to fuck off anytime you want."_

 _It's been some time since Rei has had anyone to have a normal conversation with. Her sensei was too much like an adult and it bored her to tears. Uchiha was much closer to her in age and he didn't seem to mind her. Rei liked spending time on the plateau and she didn't mind his silent company. It was better than having someone belittle or frighten her._

 _Uchiha scrutinized her as his expression settled into a light frown. If it weren't for that small indication, the young Akatsuki would very much be the statue he liked to portray he was. Rei wondered if her question bewildered him or maybe he was just laughing on the inside at her pathetic request._

 _Rei's fingers clenched over the end of her shirt until she felt her nails digging into her palms. She shouldn't have asked him. It wasn't her place. She was just a lowly novice while he was—_

" _I am always here at dawn."_

 _Eyes wide, Rei's fingers relaxed out of surprise. She was confused as the Uchiha's agreement was rather unexpected. She had only_ hoped _that he would agree, but she never in a million years thought he actually would. He seemed much too uptight and noble to waste time on someone like her._

 _But Rei wasn't about to refuse._

 _She bit her lip from letting the smile show. She didn't want to seem too eager even if she was._

 _Bowing, she left the Uchiha to his solitude and walked the gravel path towards the mansion. Once she was a distance away, Rei beamed toothily._

I have a _friend_.

* * *

The door to the storage room opened and Rei stumbled in holding onto crates and barrels. She groaned as a wave crashed against the hull, making the whole boat rock dizzyingly.

 _Oh, Kami. I_ hate _boats._

Her cheeks puffed for a second as another wave of nausea came over her. How many times could she vomit in the span of two hours? Rei really didn't have anything else to spew out since everything had already been thrown overboard.

She needed to reach her makeshift bed. Sleeping it off was her best chance right now.

With baby steps she approached a corner of the room where a small lantern was emitting a dim light. The Uchiha brat was there, laying on his back with his head on his backpack. There really wasn't anything suitable in the room that could be used as a bed and the Captain of the ship hadn't exactly been welcoming even if he agreed to store away two 'poor orphans'.

Sasuke's eyes opened once he heard the white-haired one crash into every crate on the way and watched as she dropped to the ground a short distance from the light. She crawled into a fetal pose, all the while moaning.

Sasuke couldn't be any happier. The sound of her groans and moans and dry heaving were like a choir of angels to his ears.

"You know, there's still some food left if you're hungry." He smirked as Rei turned towards him and showed her teeth.

"Go fuck your—"

Rei immediately huddled back as she held her stomach. She was moments away from throwing up all over this floor.

The boy's smirk broadened as his eyes turned back to the ceiling. This wasn't his first time on a boat and he was glad he didn't get seasickness. Fortunately, the swordsman wasn't that lucky.

His smile dissipated. Ever since stepping foot in this storage room, he had done nothing but think on this mission. Sasuke couldn't fathom helping Rei accomplish her mission. This was beyond perversion and he wasn't so morally bankrupt that he would just join the swordsman in her task. He might not know who these people were and to be truthful he didn't want to know either, but these were _human beings_. They talked, they thought, they breathed just like him. He didn't matter if it was a peasant or a shinobi, it was still a person.

"What happens when we reach Okun?"

Rei groaned as she rolled over and adjusted her sunglasses.

"We'll have to keep a low profile." The girl breathed in deeply as she tried to calm herself. "I don't want to end up on Earth's 'shit list', so we're gonna have to be like two sneaky ninjas. No attention, no public scenes and that means, don't piss me off."

"Because you can't control yourself?" Sasuke asked flatly.

"Especially when little turds annoy me." She flashed her teeth in irritation. "Kabuto has a mole there that feeds him information whenever something new happens. He's been reporting that there's been some unrest in Okun on the whole political side. I didn't really hear the rest since politics make me fall right into deep sleep, the kind where you drool over yourself like a retarded kid. Anyways, short story is that we need to get that fucking clan to start cooperating again by any means necessary."

"And if they won't?" This whole ordeal seemed complicated and beyond his knowledge on affairs of state. He didn't even care before in Konoha, he won't start now in some unheard of town in Earth.

"That's for sensei to decide, but I'm pretty sure he won't want any stones left unturned. You get me?"

A bitter taste stung his tongue as the girl was talking about killing them—destroying a clan. Sasuke closed his eyes tight as he heard the distant sound of his brother's cold voice and his own shrill screams.

 _Not now,_ he thought. He couldn't have a breakdown here with her.

Taking a heavy breath, Sasuke grimaced as he gazed askance at the girl. He didn't know if she was watching him or not since she was still wearing those damned sunglasses. It was really starting to piss him off and at first chance he swore he would break them.

"You're going to need more people to do that."

"No, I don't." The girl's arms moved from her stomach so nothing could obstruct her. "I'm more than capable on my own…" She sneered maliciously. "Just like your _brother_."

It was reflex. Sasuke threw a punch her way without even thinking and Rei caught it and pulled him into her. Her legs snaked around his and held them in a vice grip as her hands caged his down next to his head. He was completely in her snare and he could do nothing physically, but try and buck her off him.

"Oh, this is familiar." Rei said as she adjusted herself on his thighs, smirking devilishly.

"Get off me!"

She chuckled. "Make me."

And he would have succeeded if only he could activate his Sharingan. With horror, Sasuke realized that no matter how much he forced himself, he couldn't get his Sharingan to come out.

 _What the hell?_

His eyes landed on the grinning Rei as she watched him struggle futilely with wicked delight.

Sasuke felt something click in his brain. This had happened before when they first met. They had been in the exact same position with him unable to activate his kekkei genkai. _She_ was stopping him from using his ability.

—How? Did she have a kekkei genkai like him?

"You're doing this."

Her smile sharpened as she stuck out her tongue at him.

Sasuke began struggling again with renewed fervor. He hated this powerlessness. It reminded him too much of his confrontation with his brother where he had been unable to even faze the older Uchiha. And now he came upon another one like _him_ , one he didn't even have the strength to get off himself.

"If you say _please_ , I'll—"

The girl suddenly blanched as the color drained from her face.

Without a word, she scampered off him and ran as fast as she could out of the room, bumping into a few crates on the way.

Sasuke breathed in relief as he heard Rei throwing up like an animal through the walls. He crawled back to his side and sat against the wall. Now, his Sharingan came easily, but just a few seconds ago it felt like someone had just turned his kekkei genkai off similar to a light switch.

What the hell kind of ability was that? Was Rei capable of blocking abilities? Jutsus maybe?

He knew that even if he asked he wouldn't get an answer, so he'll have to stay silent and observe her. If the swordsman had the kind of ability he thought she had then he needed to be sure. For him, something like that was _dangerous_.

* * *

The ship docked at Okun three days later and Rei and Sasuke were now standing lost on the busy docks.

Rei adjusted on her head a shawl she stole from an old woman since her white hair stood out like a sore thumb in this sea of dark colors and they needed to be incognito. There were so many people in the harbor and beyond them were the overcrowded markets with merchants yelling their goods for the day and customers bartering for cheaper prices. Everything smelled like fish, blood and sweat, so Rei had to hold her hand to her nose to try and protect herself from the pungent stench.

"Where the hell is that little troll?" Rei hissed as she spied the crowds from behind her glasses. The town guards that were standing vigilant on higher points were starting to make her feel nervous. They were most likely scanning the crowds for any signs of violence or shady individuals.

"Who?" Sasuke asked as he grimaced at the people pushing and shoving against him with luggage and crates of live animals.

"Kabuto's spy. He's supposed to pick us up and take us to his house."

After that small confrontation in the storage room, they had barely spoken. Her barb had put Sasuke off from even looking her way lest he acted on his impulse to stab her. Rei didn't seem to even acknowledge him as she was more preoccupied with keeping her food down in her stomach than his moods.

"Oi! Rei-sama!"

Both ninja snapped at the same time towards a scrawny man waving at them from a vantage point.

"Over here!"

Rei looked on the verge of bursting a blood vessel as she grinded her teeth hard enough for even Sasuke to hear.

Marching through the crowd, Sasuke followed the white-haired girl as she at times pushed people out of her way resulting in them stumbling or downright falling to their knees. But since it was so crowded, the civilians couldn't see the culprit and were left shouting at innocent bystanders.

As they got closer to the waving man, Sasuke could see him better. He was a man in his late twenties with short dark, curly hair and a mousy face. He was standing on the dirty, marble wall of a large fountain. As Rei approached him, the man jumped off and greeted the girl only to be engulfed by a one-handed hug.

Sasuke frowned dubiously at the girl's display of affection, but was quickly put at ease once he saw the man's expression contort into barely suppressed pain.

What Sasuke didn't see was Rei's other hand mercilessly gripping the man's crotch.

"You shithead!" Rei hissed acidic in his ear as she tried to make everything look like just a happy reunion. "You ever shout my name out like that again, I will _decimate_ these tiny, shriveled up prunes you call testicles!" How the hell did Kabuto dependent on someone so noisy was beyond her. "Squeak if you understand."

The pathetic squeal that came out of him had him resemble the rat his face implied.

"Take us to safe grounds, you ugly weasel, before I gut and quarter you right where you stand."

With one last excruciating squeeze, Rei disentangled from him and wiped her hand on his bent over form. The man was clutching his wobbly knees as he rode out the pain in his nether regions.

Sasuke looked disturbed at the man. He could make a good assumption as to what the swordsman did to have him shaking like a leaf and he _almost_ felt sorry for him.

With a heavy intake of breath, the man straightened out and tried to pull himself together, but the two shinobi could still see the traces of tears in his eyes.

"Th-This way."

Rei smirked viciously as she eyed the man's funny, crab-like walk.

 _Serves him right._

* * *

The spy took them to his house which was small but secluded in the shoddier parts of Okun. Once inside, Rei saw the soundproof seals plastered over the walls. At least he knew this much.

"I've settled up my room for you, Rei-sama, but I wasn't expecting extra company." The man scrutinized Sasuke in confusion. Kabuo-sama hadn't informed him of a kid that was going to tag along with the Commander.

"Don't you have another bed?" Rei said once she inspected the small, almost claustrophobic room and the creased sheets.

"I have a hamac, but that's mi—"

"I'll take that." She said without expecting a retort. She decided where she slept, not this rat. "Sasuke, you can take the bed."

"Why?" Sasuke narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

As she walked passed him, he heard her whisper. "I rather not sleep in his bed. Who knows _what_ he did in it."

The boy grimaced as now she planted _that_ in his head.

Rei rested on a chair as the man brought a pitcher of water and three cups and settled them on the small, tarnished table. Rei filled her cup before downing it in one go.

"Tell me everything."

"Right." The man gingerly settled opposite her on a chair ( _his jewels still hurt!_ ) as the Uchiha leaned against the wall. "So, the past few weeks here have been crazy. The people are revolting over the leadership of the town. They don't want Watanabe in charge anymore since it's been brought to light that he's been abusing his power."

"How?"

"He's spending the city's money on himself." That man chuckled with a light wheeze. "Exotic animals, antiques, baubles, women of loose morals, even some rent-boys. I even heard a she-male was involved."

Rei and Sasuke scrunched up their noses in revulsion. _Eeew…_

"The guy's a huge pervert that loves the posh life."

Rei sighed as she was starting to get impatient. "Mori, if you keep boring me with disgusting, old men's debauched pastimes, I think you know what will happen to your equally disgusting balls."

The man paled ten shades of powder white.

"C-Commander, if Watanabe gets kicked out of office then that means the Maeda clan will not be able to hold up their end of the bargain anymore. Watanabe is the one letting the ships with the _precious_ cargo go through customs. Without him, the boss would have to wait until a new mayor is elected, bribed and only when the chaos finally ends, we can start shipping again. And that could take _months_. The Daimyo's eye is circling Okun right now and from what I've seen so far, there's going to be an uprising. Very soon."

Rei cursed as she understood the implications. This could get ugly really fast.

"Why isn't the Daimyo doing anything then?" Sasuke asked as he listened to the man.

"Watanabe is the Daimyo's wife most favorite brother. As you can imagine that proves to be a problem for the head of the country." Mori smirked as he knew better. "But I know the real reason—Watanabe's got something incriminating that could _greatly_ embarrass the daimyo if it were ever exposed. He would lose credibility not only internally, but externally as well. So, the Daimyo's not gonna send any assassins after him soon. I think he's waiting for somebody unrelated to do it for him."

"What did he do? Fuck a donkey?" Rei scoffed, growing bored of so much blackmailing.

Mori shrugged. He never found out what it was and he was smart enough not to want to either. Information like that was _lethal_.

"I think I have enough for now." Rising up from her seat, Rei summoned a moth. "I want all the intelligence you scrounged up on the Maeda Clan and Watanabe. And I mean _everything_. If they were born with a second pair of tits, I want to know."

"Where are you going?" Sasuke asked as the girl walked out of the meager living into the bedroom.

"I have to talk to sensei."

Rei closed the door in the boy's face and settled on the bed cross-legged. Calming herself, she focused on the image of her sensei and waited for the man to use the other moth and open up the channel between them.

It didn't take long for the feeling of Orochimaru's sly presence to crawl into her brain.

" _Yes?"_

" _Sensei, I think we'll have to pull out of Earth."_

" _Why?"_

" _Shit's gonna hit the fan here. You were right about Watanabe and the people want his head for wasting their tax paying money on frivolities. Our mole here smells an uprising soon and if blood spills, Iwakagure will_ definitely _get involved. And if those clowns poke their nose in, I don't think that idiot Watanabe will be able to keep his mouth shut for long, if he's still alive. They'll get to Maeda clan and after some_ vigorous _torture sessions they'll find our involvement in kidnapping, torture and murder of their countrymen."_

That could not happen. They were still experiencing the aftereffects of the Konoha Crush as the Oto forces were still not at a hundred percent.

" _They'll be on us faster than flies on shit and Rice's daimyo is gonna be pissed at us since he'll have to deal with this shitstorm."_

Rei heard a scoff.

" _That man is unimportant. He is just a puppet I have to appease from time to time."_ Orochimaru couldn't even be bothered to care for such a weak, foolish attempt at a man. _"What I care about is erasing any traces of our involvement. I_ don't _want Iwakagure's military force on our doorstep because of a few insignificant peasants."_

" _What do you want me to do?"_

A silence came from the other end. No doubt Orochimaru was thinking up countless scenarios. The trick was picking up which one suited his needs best.

" _Kill that useless sack of organs Watanabe and go see the Maeda. I will wish to speak with them."_

" _Watanabe is_ heavily _connected and transport could end for a few months if he suddenly died."_

" _I know all about that idiot and I don't care, but I might be able to resolve the shipping problem with the head of the Maeda."_

Rei shrugged indifferently. _"Okay."_

" _And for Kami's sake, don't make it look like an assassination! Make it look like an accident or natural death."_

The girl's lips contorted in confusion _. "I think an assassination is much less suspicious than natural death, sensei. Seeing a shinobi die naturally is like seeing a unicorn fart rainbows."_

There was a prolonged silence on the other end.

" _Sensei?" Did their conversation get interrupted?_

"… _As_ imaginative _as that comparison was, do try to keep murder as the last option."_ The man drawled neutral toned before his words took a sharp hiss. _"Get it done as soon as possible. I'm already angry enough that I will have to postpone new experiments; I don't need to be_ furious _that we have a potential war on our hands."_

Rei nodded even knowing that Orochimaru couldn't see her. She then voiced a question that had been bugging her.

" _What if Maeda decides to cut their ties with us?"_

It wasn't far-fetched. Maybe the recent conflict would scare them from doing anymore business with them. Too risky.

" _Then they are of no use to me and should be dealt with appropriately."_ The Sannin said calmly.

Rei smirked as she slid her sunglasses down her nose and scratched the corner of her eye. _Clean house, huh?_

" _What does_ he _think of all of this?"_

" _He's conflicted."_ Rei shook off the eyelash that got stuck on her retina. " _There's still too much of that Konoha teaching in him."_

The girl a heard a long winded sigh from his end.

" _I hope at least some good will come out of this mission."_

Rei smiled whimsically as she doubted that Orochimaru will get his desired result with the boy. He was a stubborn one.

" _Don't worry, sensei. I'll fix everything here."_

Orochimaru retracted from their conversation and soon the connection was severed.

Rei sighed as she took off her sunglasses to massage the bridge of her nose. This wasn't an easy request. She'll have to be very careful with how she handled this situation. If Iwa got even a whiff of her presence, she'll be doomed to either swiftly escape the country or worse, get caught and suffer the necrotic hands of Earth's torturers.

Rei slipped her glasses back on and joined the others.

"Commander, here are my notes." The man waved towards his table, now clustered with papers.

Her eyes roved over the stacks of papers, some stained and others glued back with transparent tape. There were even a few napkins with scribbling on them. "Is this how spies work these days? I don't even understand half the words here. Which order are these in?"

The man blinked owlishly before hurriedly arranging his work. The toothy snarl directed at him had a bead of sweat roll down the side of his face.

Rei huffed as she stepped away from the noise of shuffling papers and settled against the wall of the partially open window. She badly needed a cigarette.

"The level of incompetence is staggering here."

The boy's deep voice had her scoff as she lit up her cigarette. He settled near her as he leaned on the other side of the window, watching her blankly.

"Blame Kabuto for this. That's his man."

"What did Orochimaru say?" Sasuke crossed his arms over his chest.

"He wants us to get rid of the mayor and have some talks with the Maeda."

Sasuke shook his head in disbelief. "I don't know anything about negotiations and I'm almost sure you don't either."

The girl's white brows rose. "I'll have you know, brat, that I'm a great mediator. I'm _very_ persuasive."

He scoffed. "With what? Your teeth?"

Rei glared but then a sly smirk split her lips wide. She leaned very closely into Sasuke, a lecherous expression on her face. The urge to push her away was strong, but Sasuke steeled himself. Rei was very close, just a breath away from his lips as her lashes fluttered prettily.

"Some like it."

In an instant, she fainted a bite his way. Sasuke backed away scowling as Rei had been an inch from biting his nose. It didn't help his frazzled nerves as she found his discomfort amusing judging from her throaty chuckle.

"Ummm…"

Mori's cough disrupted their secluded bubble.

"Do you want me to step outside for a moment?" The man looked dubiously between them.

Annoyance had both teenagers straightening out. Was he thinking that they…

Rei shuddered. _Just no._

—As far as she knew, she wasn't a cradle robber.

"Is it done?" She snapped at him.

"Yeah, browse at your leisure, Commander." The man stood aside as the girl torpedoed towards the table.

She didn't seem to read them as her eyes just perused over the papers. Picking up a file, she looked over it with narrowed eyes. To Sasuke it looked like she was attempting to burn holes through the paper.

To his surprise, she pushed the document towards his face. "You'll do the reading."

"Why? Are you blind also?"

Rei sneered. "Because I said so."

He scoffed as he haughtily took the piece of paper and sat down at the table.

* * *

Sasuke threw the last piece of paper away as he leaned in his chair and rubbed his aching neck.

It was well into night as he read by candle light, the swordsman merely listening to him. He felt exhaustion sapping him of stamina as just as he got off a three day trip on a boat, he had to use his tired brain to sponge every bit of inked information.

He had learned more than he wanted to know about the Maeda clan and Watanabe. Some had been trivial information, others important and some just plain disgusting. And all of this was going to help the girl opposite him think up a way to get her boss everything he wanted.

His mind stayed on what he read about the Maeda. It was a small clan, powerful not only in ability but in fortune as well. Eiichi Maeda was the current leader. He had a wife and five children which only one of them was a boy. The reports said that the clan was strictly a patriarchy, so the son was very important as he will be the future leader despite being the youngest of the lot.

"If we can't negotiate with this clan, you're going to kill them, right?" Sasuke's eyes perused over the photos of the clan members.

"Yep."

His eyes rose to the girl sitting with her feet on the table and balancing herself on the back legs of the chair. Her hands were interlocked behind her head as her mouth fiddled with yet another cigarette. He swore there was a fog in the house from all the smoke she was exhaling.

"Do you even care?"

"Nope."

Sasuke grimaced. "Were you damaged at birth or did Orochimaru open your head and removed a part of your brain that dealt with sympathy?"

Rei stopped playing with the chair as her head rose to stare at him. She wasn't wearing her sunglasses at the moment and Sasuke noticed again that unnatural dilation of her pupils.

"I doubt you have more compassion for these people than I do." She removed her feet from the table and sat normally in her chair as her cigarette dangled from the movement of her lips. "Tell me, brat. Do _you_ care about them? Would you put your life on the line for these people even after knowing every dirty little secret?"

"They're not my problem."

Her shoulders rose in a shrug. "Then why are you so against this?"

"I don't give a shit about these people. I don't know them and I don't care about their plight." That was the truth. As much as he felt bad for them, he wouldn't go out of his way to help them. "But I do care about killing people that have never done me any wrong."

Rei narrowed her eyes on him and plucked the cigarette from her mouth. Smoke billowed from her nostrils and partially opened lips as she seemed absorbed by her thoughts.

"So, you need a justifiable reason to kill someone…An eye for an eye, hmm?" Now she understood why Kabuto had no data on any of the Uchiha's victims. He probably didn't have any. "That's a shitty mindset for a ninja."

"It's better than yours that kills indiscriminately."

"That's not true." Rei scrunched up her nose. "I only kill when I'm being ordered to."

Sasuke scoffed at her lies. "You kill anyone that pisses you off because you're nothing but a _berserker_."

Rei's lips pressed harshly into a straight, thin line. Her nails dug into the wooden surface of the table forming jagged indents as she kept them away from the Uchiha's soft, pink throat. She fucking _hated_ being called that!

Sasuke heard about her nickname and thought it suited her beastly tendencies. He was even more pleased to see it affected her so strongly.

"I know I lose my temper often and the fuckers that piss me off usually end up dead or close, but I'm not going to feel bad about it." Rei growled as she extinguished her cigarette, still visibly incensed. "Why are you trying to? It's not gonna work, you know. It's not gonna save anyone."

"Have you stopped for a moment to think of other ways to deal with this problem?"

"No." She deadpanned.

Sasuke shook his head as he leaned back in his seat. "And you accuse me of having a shitty mindset."

The swordsman leaned forward on the table, captivating the Uchiha's entire attention. Her eyes were wide and the marble like luster of her pupils shone with premature sparks of that raging inferno kept within.

"Look, I don't care about resolving this in some complicated, devious way because I don't have the patience for it. I just want clear and quick results and the only way to do that is by killing some assholes. Besides, why the hell would I go against sensei's orders, aside from your own satisfaction at seeing me dead?"

She doesn't let him answer as she pointed a sharp finger at him.

"Now, you listen to me. If you even think about fucking up my plans because of some guilty conscious I _will_ disobey sensei's orders and beat the living shit out of you!" She huffed as forced the black tendrils to recede from her eyes. "If you can't stomach what will happen, remain here with Mori. I will do it on my own."

"I'm not staying behind!" Sasuke hissed furiously as he got in her face, challenging her with his Sharingan activated.

Rei hissed before settling back in her seat, still glowering at him. Sasuke breathed heavily as his fingers unclenched from the armrests. He really had wanted in that moment to punch her in the face for threatening him, but he stopped himself from doing such a foolish mistake. The girl was a powder keg right now with the fuse lit. It would be best to put out that fire while he still could.

"What are _we_ going to do first?"

Rei placed the sole of her boot against the edge of the table and pushed herself to balance on the back legs of the chair. Her hands interlaced on her stomach as her head rested on the backrest, attempting to meditate her anger away.

 _Feng Shui._

"We'll visit the Maeda first thing tomorrow. I need to know where they stand with us." Her eyes opened as they fixated on the black mold on the ceiling. "After that, we need to figure out a way to get rid of Watanabe without suspicion."

* * *

 _ **Foot Note:**_ Hmmm, Rei and Sasuke are getting themselves involved in town politics. Can't really say they are the best choice in doing that, but I think they'll be funny at it. I just hope they don't screw it up or it's their asses Oro's gonna beat. Honhonhon…


	9. Hard Choices

_**Author's Note:**_

To **Blades of Fury –** It will and it won't diverge from cannon. I know that sounds vague, but that's the beauty of mystery. I'm still not exactly sure if at the end I'll keep to the manga or not, but there's still time until then. :)

* * *

 _ **River Country – Five years ago**_

" _Do you wanna see my eye?"_

 _Itachi frowned as the girl all but got in his face exposing her now uncovered eye. She used her fingers to peel the lids as far apart as she could so the Uchiha had an up close and personal view of the workings of her organ. There were splotches of blood and reddish veins all over the whites of her eye. The Akatsuki member stared in curiosity at her shrunken pupil—they looked like a pinprick in a clear blue ocean._

" _Last night, I could see everything almost as clear as in daylight. I can even zoom in on shit like a camera lens! Like your face, right now. I can see every old scar you have." She beamed as she let her lids plop back. "Pretty cool, huh?"_

 _The former Uchiha heir didn't join in her cheer. Her eye reminded him of a tarsier's and he wondered if at night the pupil expanded until there was only one giant black dot._

" _And there is no side-effect?"_

" _Well, it still kinda hurts and sensei said I can't stare at the sun or anything extremely bright." Even the faintest brush against her eye had her wince in ache now. She hoped that the pain would fade soon._

" _You should wear sunglasses."_

 _The girl scratched her bandaged eye as she stared in thought. "I don't have any and I can't buy some since sensei doesn't give me money. And there are no markets for at least 10km in each direction." She shrugged carelessly. "I'll be alright, though. I_ always _am."_

 _She smiled brightly, but to Rei's disappointment Itachi returned to his musings as he stared out over the edge into the lush valley below. The sun was setting and the wildlife was waking up for its nocturnal dance._

 _Rei stared at his profile as a slight breeze rustled his raven locks. With a fluid grace he swiped them from his face, never once breaking his concentration. The girl's attention was enraptured by the dark lashes lowering almost seductively and Rei swore he had the prettiest face she'd ever seen. This thirteen year old was prettier than most geisha (_ which could be interpreted as either a compliment or an insult _)._

How did he end up here, _she wondered_.

 _The Uchiha seemed out of place, probably more so if he stood next to the others. Compared to them, Itachi was the odd man out. Young, noble, pretty and cool as a cucumber. No wonder sensei didn't like him._

" _What is it, girl?"_

 _Rei started. She hadn't realized he had been watching her ogling him. Her cheeks instantly burned as she tried to sputter her way out of this. Her heart beat like a festival taiko and the only things that came out of her mouth were inarticulate words._

 _But the Uchiha was patient and waited for the girl to form coherent sentences._

" _I just…" She started as she fiddled with the bandage. "When I heard about you I thought you were older."_

" _Why is that?"_

" _Because you're a nuke-nin."_

 _Curiosity got the better of him. "Does age really matter?"_

Didn't it usually? _"I've never seen a nuke-nin so young. They're usually old like Sasori-sama or sensei."_

 _Mentioning her sensei brought out a reaction out of the Uchiha. "What has Orochimaru told you about me?"_

— _She didn't even hesitate._

" _That you killed your whole clan."_

 _Itachi scrutinized her closely. She didn't seem to reel back in fear or even grimace in disgust. Most people did when hearing that he was guilty of slaughtering his entire extended family. Well, almost all._

" _Are you not afraid?"_

 _To his evident surprise, Rei chuckled sardonically._

" _I'm the student of the Snake Sannin, a man known for his sadism and experimentation on people. I travel with him and his partner, who is also a nuke-nin feared in Wind Country for his cruelty and, who I might add, makes puppets out of people. I live in an organization full of ruthless shinobi who wouldn't bat an eyelash if they killed me." There was no trace of her former amusement. At this moment, Rei appeared wiser beyond her ears as the bleak depths of her eyes spoke of experiencing far too much for someone so young. "Of course I'm scared; you're no different from the others. You're not special. Same monster, different shape."_

 _Itachi said nothing as he stared with a particular iciness making Rei realize that she had crossed a line. This was still her superior she was talking to._

 _She bowed low, fearful of her life. "I—I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say you were a monster! I—"_

" _It's alright. You are not wrong."_

 _The unexpected melancholic tone had Rei again question the man-child before her. Sensei said that he was a psychopath, but psychos don't feel. So then why did he stare at the sunset with such longing that it tore at her own heartstrings?_

 _This wasn't the statuesque Uchiha from the days before, this was a kid yearning after something out of his reach. Was he thinking of his clan? Did he regret his deeds? It had been only three months since his hands became stained with his clan's blood and he might still be experiencing the shock of it._ If _he wasn't a psychopath, that is._

 _Rei wanted to stroke his hair and tell him that it was alright, but she was sure that if she did, she'll lose the hand._

" _You don't look like a psychopath."_

 _The Uchiha caught her pitying gawk as he came out of his reverie. He didn't seem pleased by it or by the fact that she saw him while his guard was lowered. This was Orochiamru's apprentice and he wasn't aware of what she reported back to her master._

" _Is that what_ he _called me?"_

 _Rei shrugged. Not only Orochimaru, but Sasori once mentioned it in conversation (_ not with her of course, she had just been listening in _)._

" _And what does a psychopath look like, girl?"_

" _Just…_ different _. You look normal."_

 _He scoffed lightly and for the second time today Rei became fearful. The coldness in his eyes matched the aggression felt underneath his rigid fingertips. The girl was ready to Shunshin away if those fingers even twitched in her direction and she had gotten quite good at running in part due to Orochimaru's unpredictable mood swings._

" _Even the most demure of people can be vicious killers inside." He chided her mistaken impression of him. People who tended to do that often ended up eating their own words…and teeth. "Do not judge others by the way they look or you will be left the fool."_

 _Rei interlocked her fingers and squeezed almost painfully as she digested his words. Was he trying to warn her against him? She hoped not. He was the sane one around here and if he turned out to be just like the others then there really was no hope for normal conversation._

— _A life doomed to listening to Orochimaru's scientific rants seemed like too cruel of a punishment._

" _Can I ask you something?"_

 _Her unruly mop of dark hair shielded her eye from his scrutiny. She did not want to see his reaction._

"… _Why did you do it?"_

 _It didn't take the Uchiha long to figure out what she was referring to. It was_ the _question everyone asked._

" _For power. My clan was weak, driven by selfish desires. They believed that if they clung to someone more powerful than them, they would be catapulted to unrealistic heights." As he parroted his hand-written speech his fingers clenched into fists and, for just a moment, Itachi forgot that he was sitting in the middle of a plateau talking with Orochimaru's apprentice. "Unfortunately, they didn't anticipate that that powerful being would not be so inclined to carry so many over his back, not for such a gluttonous reason. If one wants to reach a goal, he should be able to do it on his own not by using someone else._ He _didn't anticipate my reaction to high trea—"_

 _He stopped himself the moment he felt his flesh being pierced. Opening his hands, he discovered that in his anger he had sunken his nails into his own flesh, drawing blood. A warning sign that he was venturing off into dangerous territory._

 _He sighed jarringly as he wiped the blood away. "Forget what I said."_

 _The girl watched him with confused, uncomfortable eyes. Rei didn't know what memory brought out that moment of rage, but she could relate to it. It was black, desolate and soul-sucking. Inside this man-boy was a caged demon born out of disappointment and cruelty, ready to be unleashed upon the world._

 _She understood the emotion only because she too had gone through it. The anger, the pain, never being enough._

" _Was it hard?" She clenched the edge of her shirt as dark thoughts invaded her mind. "Killing you mother and father?"_

" _No." He answered without pause._

" _Heh…" She smiled bleakly. "I wish I had that strength of mind, but I know that deep down I could never go through with it."_

" _You'd be surprised of what we're capable of given the right incentive."_

 _She shrugged. She wouldn't know._

" _My mom wasn't a nice person, that's why I ran away. But…I'm not sad about it. If I hadn't done that then I wouldn't have met sensei so it was worth it."_

 _At least Orochimaru saw something in her. She wasn't an insignificant ant to be crushed to fine grain._

" _Have you never tried going back?"_

 _She tilted her head in bafflement. "I have nothing to go back to._ This _is my home. I like it better than my old life, anyways."_

 _Her wide eyes stared at him with a deep rooted sadness, but not for him. She didn't pity_ him _. She just felt sick and sad of it all._

" _Hey…I'm sorry."_

 _Itachi narrowed his eyes in perplexity. "Why?"_

" _Because I'm sure nobody has ever told you that before." A small smile lacking in any sort of emotion graced her lips. A doll's smile, hollow and detached. "Only people like us, who've never felt love or kindness, can just walk away without looking back once."_

 _Itachi looked at her more closely. He couldn't say he was like her. He knew what love felt like, his mother had loved him as her first son, her baby, and his brother had worshiped him like a kami. Unfortunately, not once had that stopped him from performing his duty. Not even something as powerful as love stayed his hand from ending his parents' life. Only when he was confronted with killing his little brother—the life of an innocent—did the mask break and despair swallowed him whole._

 _He fled that night because if he had remained even a second more, he would have failed in his duty._

" _But it's not so bad, right? Sensei says love makes you weak and stupid. I'm neither and you ain't either, so we're better." Her eyes widened with a manic glee as shadows danced across the skin underneath her eyes, making her already abnormal eyes even eerier. "We're strong unlike those dumbass ninja who waste away on shitty kids and nagging spouses. We can write our own future without interference and I want a grand destiny for me. I want people to never forget my name, good or bad. And one day I_ know _I'm gonna achieve that because I'm not trash. Those things on Orochimaru's operating table are trash! They don't deserve to live! I do!"_

 _Her breath was wheezing by the end of her tirade. She seemed to be struggling in keeping her tongue under control as she kept opening her mouth and promptly closing it, biting her lower lip in punishment._

 _It was then that Itachi became aware that behind that childlike, cheerful and naïve personality of her lurked something darker. Something he'd seen only when he looked in the mirror._

— _A vicious beast with fangs poised to shred and tear._

 _Only hers was still growing and he didn't wish to see it when it emerged. It would be the end of her as she was now._

 _But why tell her that? She could still cling onto her illusions. What else did we have in this world but our fantasies?_

" _Anything is possible."_

 _She smiled._

* * *

Rei and Sasuke were standing outside the Maeda main household, surrounded by clansmen who went about on their daily business. The duo was waiting for the head servant to inform his master of their arrival and Rei was starting to believe he was delaying on purpose ( _it's been fifteen minutes!_ ).

Rei tried to distract her growing ire by watching the vigilant shinobi as they walked the compound grounds, either on an errand or on a walk with their family. She knew that right now everyone was watching them closely. One wrong step and they would be inclined to attack for the _glory_ of the clan.

 _Pfft._

Her eyes slid to Sasuke from behind the sunglasses. He looked just about ready to bolt judging from the tenseness in his shoulders. She wondered if she touched him right now, if he would splinter into a thousand pieces. On any other day that would have been _fun_ to watch, but right now it just told her that he was too high-strung to be thinking clearly.

"Loosen up, brat. You're tighter than a virgin."

Sasuke turned to her, revolted.

"I'm _not_."

She scoffed. "Give me a fucking break. I bet half of these assholes are watching us so closely because you're scowling like an ogre. So, quit it. It's gonna get you accidently killed and me un-accidently murdered."

"That's not even a word."

"It is if I say it." Her teeth flashed.

Sasuke rolled his eyes in annoyance, but he did try to massage his locked jaw into loosening up.

"This Eiichi…" Rei's curiosity spiked at his words. "He's the one that made the pact with Orochimaru?"

"I guess." Rei scratched her chin nonchalantly. "I wasn't here when they made their deal years ago. Kabuto was the one that accompanied sensei which makes me fucking wonder why he sent me on this crappy mission when I could have been doing something much more productive. Kabuto is much more suited for this."

"I agree."

Rei didn't get the chance to a snap at him as the servant returned as grim faced as ever.

"The master will see you, Rei-sama. Only _you_."

The Uchiha boy glared at the man, but conceded to remaining behind. He had nothing to contribute to this mission either ways, but that didn't mean he was alright with being disregarded.

Rei approached him and whispered low enough so the Maeda servant wouldn't hear.

"Wait here and don't do anything stupid to embarrass sensei, but do keep your eyes open for anything _interesting_. If you talk to anyone, watch what you say and _never_ reveal your family name. You're just my one-named apprentice, got it?"

On another day, Rei would have gloated and teased him for being _her_ cute student, but right now she had bigger fish to skewer. She really hoped the arrogant boy would keep his mouth shut and bothered no one, but that might be too much to ask.

Rei followed the servant until they reached a lavishly decorated shogi screen and the man lowered to his knees before sliding the door open. The girl padded inside, already forgetting the existence of the impudent servant.

Rei would have whistled at the elegant decorations. The room was a large study with grand bookcases lined against the wooden walls and scrolls and other books piled atop one another as the shelves were full. There were statues of different shapes and sizes strewn across the room, each depicting a kami. One was even a small fountain with a thin stream that acted as a soothing agent. But what caught her eye the most was the sleek, black chokuto displayed on a support. It was elegant in its simplicity and Rei wondered if it was purely for decoration. She would _love_ to own that.

In the center of the room was a low table with just the man she wanted to talk to sitting on the opposite side, watching her with a hawkish gaze and a tight-lipped grimace.

 _Sensei hadn't been kidding. The man looked like he permanently had a turd underneath his nose._

"Greetings, Rei-san." Eiichi nodded cordially.

"Yo." She replied as her eyes moved to the side with puzzlement.

 _Who the fuck is_ that _?_

Blue eyes narrowed on the man sitting next to the Maeda leader. This man was bald, short and dressed in a monk's brown robe with a rosary hanging over his chest. He had the most serene smile Rei had ever seen and it instantly put her on edge.

"Who's that?"

"This is Yoshikuni, a good friend of mine." He patted the man's shoulder and monk nodded friendly.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Rei-san, on this beautiful day no less."

 _Definitely fishy._

"Will this _friend_ be joining us in our talks?"

"I will be mediating." He bowed slightly, the smile never once ceasing.

Rei reminded herself to ask Kabuto about this monk.

With a huff, she plopped down ungracefully with her legs crossed and waited for the man to speak. She did not even touch the tea offered by the monk.

"I had thought Yakushi-san would be the one to grace my threshold once again, not an unfamiliar ninja." His voice was as cold as the impression of the room.

"I'm not a ninja, I'm a kenshi. Kabuto is busy, so Orochimaru-sama sent me."

The Maeda leader looked her up and down—from her slouched pose to the light scowl on her face to the glasses over her eyes and finally to the many piercings and partially shaved head.

"I am not sure how I should feel about that. I do not like changes in my routine and I already established a rapport with Yakushi-san. No offense given, Rei-san, but I am not so sure I can do the same with _you_."

Meaning she was a vagabond compared to Kabuto.

 _Keh, ugly looking codger._

"I don't give two _fucks_ what you like or don't like, Maeda, what I do care about is getting on with our business." Rei spat as she already could tell this man was a pompous dickhead. "Unlike Kabuto, I have little to no patience for old men's drawn out conversations. So, can we please, start our negotiations before I lose my temper and I'm telling you, that is _likely_ to happen at any moment now."

The insult given had the man glare rather frighteningly. Rei could see his neck muscles bulge in tension and knew he was ready to reach for the kunais hidden on his person, but a gentle hand on his shoulder stopped his rash impulse.

"But of course, Rei-san." The monk did not seem disturbed by the hostilities between the two fighters. "That is why you have journeyed such a long, exhausting road. We will begin our affairs right now. I'm sure you're weary and wish to sleep."

 _We?_

Eiichi took a deep breath as he submitted to the hand on his shoulders and sat down from his mid-crouch. As he moved, the neckline of his yukata parted and Rei spied a familiar beaded necklace.

 _Huh, Eiichi's wearing the same rosary._

"I assume Orochimaru-dono sent you here to understand why we have ceased shipping?" The man said after reclaiming his imperial poise and continued without waiting for her answer. "I have a reason for this and I'm sure your master already guessed it from the commotion outside my compound gates."

"Yeah, he gets that it's like walking on egg-shells right now, but Orochimaru doesn't care. He wants the _products_ that you promised him. He doesn't wanna hear your excuses." You either did what he said or you went down into the grave hole.

"Unfortunately, he will have to today." The man straightened out as he stared down at her. "I would like you to inform Orochimaru-dono that I no longer will do any business with him."

Silence.

Rei glared nastily, Eiichi was stone-faced and the monk was sipping on his tea with the same serenity.

"I advise you against that, Maeda." She hissed ominously.

"I know full well the repercussions—"

"I _don't_ think you do." Her lips contorted maliciously. "Orochimaru is not the type of man you want to displease."

"I am fully aware of what type of man your master is." Eiichi's voice lowered a few octaves, giving off an arctic intonation. "I've been doing his dirty-work for the past four years and I no longer wish to do so."

The girl remained strangely silent as behind those dark lenses Rei's gaze moved between Eiichi and the monk. Why _was_ the bald man here? Was this his idea?

 _Goddammit, now sensei is gonna be mad!_

"Tell Orochimaru-dono that I regret that our collaboration must come to such an abrupt end, but I can no longer afford to work together. There is too much at stake. I must tend to my family and my soul first and foremost."

 _His soul? What the fuck?_

This was the man that Orochimaru respected? That he once said that his viciousness was almost parallel to his? The only thing Rei saw here was a defanged old bear. _And this guy…_

She zeroed in on the monk.

 _Why do I get the feeling that he's the one that pulled the teeth out of the bear?_

* * *

Sasuke sighed as he grew impatient.

Being here was screwing with his head. It reminded him too much of his own clan and the days before everything went wrong. The happy days were he didn't even know the word hate or vengeance that was now forever branded into his skin—a deformed, festering scar that never closed nor healed.

He wanted to leave this place as soon as possible. The beast had been talking with Maeda for the past half hour and he saw no end in sight.

Maybe he could just leave on his own and wait for her at the spy's house. There was literally nothing for him to do here other than stand like a statue and glare at curious Maeda childr—

Sasuke's breath stopped.

There, between clansmen, he spotted a familiar face. As the crowd parted, the Uchiha heir almost choked on shock as he saw a five-year old version of himself riding piggyback on his older brother's back. There was no trace of hostility between the siblings, just brotherly affection. Younger Sasuke talked animatedly to the quiet Itachi, an excited grin on his face while the older brother smiled softly at his antics.

 _It's not real. It can't be real._

Sasuke covered his eyes in fear of it being reality. _No…no, no, no, no._

His breath came out in short pants as he felt his chest constrict painfully. Panic seized his entire system resulting in his body shaking uncontrollably. He knew he was experiencing the beginnings of a panic attack. He's had them before, during the time he was in the hospital after his clan was slaughtered and even months following the discharge.

 _Godddamn it, he thought he was over this!_

Bunching up the shirt over his heart into a tight grip, Sasuke tried to regain his bearings. Right now, he needed to anchor his thoughts and slow down his breathing.

 _Breathe slowly. In and out._

He chanted to himself as he thought of his goal in life and centered over it. Somehow, the thoughts of mutilating his brother always worked like a charm.

"Boy, are you alright?"

Even with his vision clouded by black spots, Sasuke could still see a woman leaning over him. She had a worried frown over her face as she fanned him with a black, sakura painted hand fan. As the cool breeze soothed his frazzled mind, his vision began to clear in response.

The woman was beautifully dressed in a brightly colored kimono with a perfectly coifed hairstyle and rouge painted lips. Every inch of her appeared so perfect that Sasuke wondered if she was a figment of his panic attack.

"Oh my, you're drenched!" She unfolded a neat piece of fabric out of her sleeve and wiped the accumulated sweat off of Sasuke's brow. "You shouldn't be out in this scorching sun with that pale skin of yours. It's the easiest way to faint. I'm Maeda Saiko, Eiichi-dono's wife. Don't worry, I will take care of you until you feel better."

Sasuke ripped the fabric out of her hands, annoyed with this stranger's attention. He didn't want her pity, but her motherly attention did distract Sasuke from his troubles, enough that he was left only mildly panting. Dark eyes left the kimono-wearing woman to search for his younger self in the crowd, but only found two siblings that didn't resemble him at all.

Relief washed over him as the image had been just his jumpy imagination. He _really_ was too stressed. The sun provided no help either nor did the fact that he slept only a few hours last night thanks to Rei's need for him to read the notes.

"Are you alright now?" She curled up her fan as she stared fretfully. "Do you need a physician?"

"No, I'm alright." He handed her her cloth back. It was disgustingly damp.

"What is your name, sweet thing?"

"Sasuke."

"No family name?"

He remembered Rei's words. "No."

"Oh, I see. You're an orphan. I'm so sorry. There is nothing sadder than seeing children without parents."

Sasuke didn't want to hear her pitying words nor did he want that sympathetic gaze on him. He's had enough for a lifetime.

"Is there something you want?" He snapped back to his arrogant self, not caring in the least that this was the clan matriarch he was addressing.

"You can call me Saiko, Sasuke-kun." She smiled despite his rudeness. "I just saw you in distress, that's all. No need to get upset."

"I'm _not_ upset." He forced through gritted teeth.

"You have a funny way of showing it." She tittered coquettishly behind the sleeve of her kimono, further aggravating the boy. "Would you like to join me for tea? To pass the time at least while my husband speaks with your companion. Politics and negotiations are so boring, don't you agree?"

Just as Sasuke was about to rebuke her, a small bundle of energy bounced up next to her.

"Mom!"

Sasuke stared narrowed eyed at the gaggle of children that followed the enthusiastic girl.

"Oh Sasuke-kun, these are my children, Uma, Hanabi, the twins Kima and Sora and my _darling_ son, Jin." She tried to embrace all of them, but managed only three who squirmed in her grip. "Aren't my daughters just pretty?"

Sasuke said nothing as he stared. The majority of them weren't even passed his age, but younger. The oldest, who looked seventeen, was the only one actively avoiding his gaze as she played with her beaded necklace instead.

"Hi!" The twins harmoniously greeted.

At this point, Sasuke was seconds away from bolting. He did not want to end up married off to one of this woman's daughters. He's seen this trick once before when a girl's mother had tried it on his brother—as soon as you said something positive, even if out of politeness, you ended up discussing engagement to a girl you didn't even know.

"You're a ninja, yeah?" The energetic one asked with wide, curious eyes. "Can you show me a few moves? I'm a fast learner, I promise."

"Why would he waste his time on you, _ugly_?" One of the twins stuck her tongue out crudely at her sibling. "We're better suited!"

"Yeah!" The other puffed her chest as she backed up her twin. "You're too slow to beat anyone!"

The energetic girl grabbed both twins by their ponytails and pulled making them screech much to Sasuke's chagrin.

"Girls, that is not a proper way to behave in front of guests." The mother chided in irritation as she pulled the trio off of each other. "I am so embarrassed by their behavior, Sasuke-kun. They are a bunch of wildlings, I swear. Raised by wolves."

The son suddenly smiled as he understood that one word and howled like a wolf much to the squealing delight of the twins and the energetic girl.

"Really, what am I going to do with you?" The mother palmed her cheek in light-hearted frustration. Her eyes then moved over to Sasuke. "So, would you like to join us? I promise my girls _will_ behave this time."

A bang resounded somewhere deep inside the mansion saving Sasuke from giving the wife a polite enough reason to avoid her and her loud brood. Raised voices echoed throughout the halls and one of them Sasuke recognized as the beast's.

—The negotiations did not go well, it seemed.

Warmth engulfed his hand. Sasuke turned slowly, almost unwillingly, as he came to the realization that Maeda's wife was holding his hand into her own softer ones. She stared at him with a gentle smile, but the sheen in her eyes betrayed her composure. They were flat as steel.

"I do hope you change your mind. It would be really _nice_ to have some tea together. I truly do think we have much to talk about."

She let go of him, curtsied and left with her children before his partner could come reach them. Sasuke remained frozen as he watched the smiling girls wave at him energetically.

Crinkle.

His hand clenched tightly around the piece of paper that the woman slipped into his palm.

Like a whirlwind, Rei passed him by. If she had been any angrier, smoke would have billowed from her nostrils like a bull.

"Let's go!"

Sasuke followed the beast, shoving the paper inside his pocket for later reviewing. "How did it go?"

"What do you think?!" She barked at him, crazy eyed. "That motherfucker just swapped me aside like I was a bum! He said he won't do business with sensei anymore! That we're not _worth_ it!"

The Uchiha rolled his eyes behind her back. He tantrum was annoying as well as her screeching near his ear.

"Motherfucker just signed his death warrant." She grinded her teeth, continuously muttering obscenities under her breath.

The Uchiha simply trailed after her, no longer listening. He was more interested in the piece of paper in his pocket. At first, he had thought the woman was an air-headed wife, but that might have been just an act to put him off guard. Only at the end did she reveal her hand. Whatever she wanted from him probably had nothing to do with her daughters and more with what Rei was so angry over.

Things were starting to get interesting.

* * *

Sasuke stared at the intricate penned words. There was an address and a time written on the small note. No doubt, the wife wanted a meeting with him and Rei.

Unfortunately, the beast didn't seem to be in a talking mood because as soon as they reached the spy's house she secluded herself with her moths and once she deemed it necessary to leave the bedroom, she took to sharpening her blade with an eerie fixation.

Whatever her talk with the Sannin had been about he was not privy to it, but he understood that it had been something grave enough to send her into a state of withdrawal. The beast actually seemed nervous and that bothered Sasuke more than anything. If something could trouble her then it meant it was _huge_.

 _Swish._

Sasuke's eye twitched.

The continuous sound of sharpening stone sliding against metal was grating on his nerves. He hadn't had a problem with it in the beginning, but two hours of it was starting to eat at his already thin patience.

"Stop that."

The swish of the blade ceased and Rei's intense focus switched to him.

Sasuke flicked the piece of paper at her to which Rei caught it without breaking eye contact.

"What's this?"

"Eiichi's wife slipped me that. It's an address and a time for tonight."

A powder white brow rose in confusion as she uncurled the piece of paper, scanning it with barely any interest.

"So she's into boys." She threw the paper away, disinterested in the matriarch's sexual predilections. "How does that help me?"

Sasuke tilted his head in thought as he stared with a dead expression. Did she really not understand what that meant?

"I'm starting to think a lot of things just pass you by without notice." He ignored the confused glare as he crossed his arms stoically. "It's obvious she wants to meet us. To _talk_."

"For?"

"I think it has something to do with her husband and Orochimaru's collaboration."

Rei sheathed her katana quickly before placing it in her lap. There was an intense concentration about her as no doubt the cogs in her brain were moving at high-speed to dissect the situation. Sasuke wondered if there was a hamster in there as well, exhausting its tiny little paws as it kept the cogs functional.

"Mori!"

The man in question poked his head out from the kitchen, a few smudges of flour on him.

"What do you know about the wife?"

"Saiko?" He wiped his hands on a dishtowel as he dug through his memory. "She's a very intelligent woman. Used to be a highly skilled kunoichi, but she put away her kunais after her first child was born. If you accept her proposition then don't underestimate her. She strikes me as very conniving woman."

"Wait…" The cogs turned once again as she cupped her chin in thought. "Do you think she's trying to double cross her husband?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Only one way to find out."

"Or she could be double-crossing _you_." The man mirrored Sasuke in posture, apprehensive of the situation. "I wouldn't trust that woman as far as I could throw her. She might just be trying to get you two out of the way."

"Why?" Rei leaned back as she scrounged up her nose. "I haven't done anything to her _yet_."

"Precaution?" There were actually a number of reasons he could think of at just the top of his head.

 _It might be a setup_ , Sasuke thought. It wouldn't be so outlandish given that the Maeda had cut off all ties with Orochimaru suddenly and without regret. They might just be looking for a way to get rid of the evidence and what better way than to gather the opposite party in one place and assassinate them.

"Where is the meeting place anyways? I might tell you if it's secluded or not."

Sasuke picked up the address from the floor and handed it over to the spy. It took only one glance to reveal to Sasuke that it was indeed a good place for murder.

"This is a brothel in the red light district."

"Oh…" The girl's smugness disappeared like a sand castle struck by the tide. " _Great_."

The actual grimace peeked Sasuke's curiosity. He wondered what her problem was with brothels. He wasn't a fan of them. In fact, he thought they were rather disgusting and depraved, but weren't they something she would feel at home at? Considering she was also a depraved creature.

"Are we going or not?"

"I'm going, _alone_. You can't come. A kid in a brothel attracts attention."

Sasuke glowered in slight embarrassment. "I'm _not_ a kid and you're no older than I am. You don't even look like an adult."

"You're shorter by a head. That makes you a toddler compared to me." She huffed as she eyed his short stature. "Besides, I'm sixteen. That makes it okay for me to go in…brothels."

"Maybe I should come with you, Commander. In case it's a trap." Mori interjected as he didn't feel comfortable letting his Commander go on her own into the lion's den. The brothel in question was a rather seedy joint where they treated deaths like it was just another Tuesday.

The girl snorted as if she had heard a particularly unfunny joke. "I can handle an aged housewife and anything she throws at me. Also, I don't want you in sight. You're a spy, act like one and stay in the shadows."

Even though he hated being shoved to the side like a useless piece of furniture, perhaps Sasuke had been too hasty. If this meeting did turn out to be an assassination then he would be far away from it, safe at Mori's house while Rei would be right in the middle of it, on her own. With no backup. Or escape.

 _Win-win._

"If she tries to murder me then I'll just kill her. With the way things are going, we'll have to dispose of that family sooner or later. Might as well start tonight."

Something about her words struck a deep cord in the sole heir. The beast was itching for a massacre, he just knew it. The problem worrying the Uchiha wasn't the two adults of the main family, but their children and he wasn't about to be branded a child-killer.

He had sworn to himself on that day at the Valley that he will _not_ tread the same path as his brother and he wasn't about to start now. Not like this.

"They have kids."

The muscle at her eye convulsed. "That's just their bad luck."

Sasuke's mind blanked.

"We can't just kill a bunch of children." What the hell was wrong with her? And yes, he realized how stupid that question was. It stood to reason that she would think like that.

Rei said nothing as she kept her stare pointedly away from the Uchiha.

Sasuke ran his hand exasperatedly through his hair. Her attitude was starting to piss him off again.

"There has to be another way."

"Not this shit again." Rei groaned as she leaned back in her chair, her legs on the table. "How about we just focus on what the wife wants for the time being. We'll figure out everything else after."

Sasuke needed to think. There had to be a way that would spare that clan from bloodshed. The thought of seeing those five kids drenched in their parents' blood before they too were executed sent a cold shiver down his spine. He knew what it felt like, had lived through it, and he didn't want anyone else to experience such an excruciating, traumatizing pain, not if he was capable of stopping it.

But what could he do to stop the inevitable massacre? What would leave the Sannin content with?

He _knew_. Kami, he knew and it sickened him to even think of it.

 _But…_

If convincing the patriarch to resume shipping was the only way then he'll do it. As much as that thought disgusted him, Sasuke was prepared to make such a weighty sacrifice. Because on this path of vengeance, he will have to make so many more sacrifices and probably ones closer to heart than this situation. He will have to prepare himself for that inevitability and if this was the first step then he will overcome it.

—He will _not_ back down now.

Not willing to conceded to Rei's desolate outlook, she had been right about one thing—a person's life may be balanced by their worth and in Sasuke's eyes, those five kids outbalanced a bunch of nameless peasants. Those five brats were _real_ , he had seen them, they had talked to him and they had nothing to do with Orochimaru's ploy. He could not send them on the same path he had been forced onto. They were innocents in the grand scheme of things and those three girls with their bottomless energy and bratty attitude reminded him too much of Na—

 _No._

He will not think of _him_. He had no place in Sasuke's world anymore.

The Uchiha will spare those girls and that small boy the pain of ever knowing what it was like losing everything you loved most. He will not let Rei or Orochimaru drench that compound in crimson.

Mother forgive him if trading human lives for theirs was the only option.

* * *

 _ **Foot Note:**_ No matter how much he wishes for revenge, Sasuke still has a heart. He's still young and doesn't fully understand what the path of an avenger truly means. He might have accepted Orochimaru's offer, but he does not yet understand what climbing a mountain of skeletons means to achieve a goal. Rei does and you can see how she is.

Also, I do love the parts with Itachi and Rei! She's a much different person from the Rei of today. I like their interactions since it shows a more innocent and childlike side of hers. The potential of darkness is there and Itachi noticed it's beginning to grow, but she's not yet ready to cross over the line. Too bad that she will have to, to become the fighter of today.

Merry Christmas and a happy New Year, guys and gals! See you in 2017!


	10. Author's Note

Check my profile. I've written something there that concerns this fic.


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